


Don't You Forget About Me

by evenifwecantfindheaven



Series: Before One Tree Hill [2]
Category: One Tree Hill
Genre: Family, Hurt/Comfort, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-18
Updated: 2020-04-12
Packaged: 2021-02-28 22:41:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 34,699
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23204869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/evenifwecantfindheaven/pseuds/evenifwecantfindheaven
Summary: “If you make any attempt to get into fashion school,” Barbara finally snapped, “We’re cutting you off. You heard me, Victoria. If you choose to pursue this genuinely thoughtless plan, you will no longer be allowed to live in my home, nor will you have access to your trust fund, nor will you have a job at Cardinal Power any longer. Right, dearest?” Anthony nodded in agreement. “You’ll have no money, no credentials, no references, no power. You’ll live your life on the streets.”Victoria’s storm grey eyes glared back at Barbara. “Why would you do that to me? Why won’t you even consider helping me do something I love?”“Because, my darling, I know you could do so much better.”Pre-series: Barbara Montgomery desperately wants a husband for her daughter Victoria. Victoria desperately wants to marry the man she is in love with. Unfortunately, Victoria's lover is everything that Barbara does not want in a son-in-law, everyone seems to want the wrong things for the wrong reasons, and no one gets the happy ending they hoped for. But all this commotion has a miraculous result, and that's the birth of Brooke Penelope Davis, the girl who will one day change the world.
Series: Before One Tree Hill [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1273898
Comments: 14
Kudos: 2





	1. Let The Day Begin

If one were to stay in the small town of Tree Hill, North Carolina for any number of days, they would be sure to hear first of the basketball prowess of the Tree Hill Ravens, then of the town’s beloved basketball coach, Whitey Durham, and last but not least, of the misplaced but admired cul de sac of mansions just outside of Weaver Woods. Everyone knew that there were aristocrats-millionaires, even-residing in Tree Hill. Everyone also knew that Anthony and Barbara Montgomery, who lived in a beautiful but modest townhouse, were not among said aristocrats. Yet they walked about town with their heads held high, always doing a slight chin tilt when they addressed others, as if communicating with peasants required them to look down.

Anthony worked directly under the vice president of Cardinal Power Inc., the company that employed over half the town, and he’d been expecting that promotion any day now for the better part of two decades. While his neighbors drove to work in hard hats and blue jeans, Anthony wore suits and ties freshly pressed by his wife. Barbara wore the finest knockoff designer dresses that money could buy. When she became pregnant with their first child, her husband surprised her with the gift of her own private housekeeper. A petite, voluptuous thing with blonde waves spilling down her back, fresh out of high school. For two dollars an hour above minimum wage, Kate Porter would wash and scrub, knead and whisk, tend and soothe. But most importantly of all, she added to the illusion-at least, Barbara’s illusion-that she was rich.

Barbara was only twenty-one when Victoria Anne Montgomery was born. Her husband was pushing thirty. Some girls her age would have been bothered by the difference, but she didn’t mind. All she had ever looked for in a man was someone settled, dependable, and willing to give her full reign over her household. And as Victoria grow older, that was all that Barbara looked for in a son-in-law. The only problem was that most of the bachelors in Tree Hill were below their station, and the rest were otherwise occupied. So Barbara was all too delighted when Anthony convinced Victoria to study business at one of the big state colleges. What a wonderful opportunity to meet young men headed on the proper trajectory!

Four years of disappointment followed. Victoria aced her coursework, studied abroad in Paris for a semester, and was even approved to take a few advanced classes, but not one single bachelor fell into her lap. When Victoria came home for summers, Barbara tried taking her out to the country club as much as possible, and to some nice places in the city. Once Victoria graduated and moved back home, Barbara even convinced Anthony to get Victoria a secretarial job at Cardinal Power in hopes that Victoria would meet some of the other higher-ups there. And still nothing. Barbara tried to be subtle. Every few days, she would ask Victoria if she had met anybody nice at work. Victoria would give some mundane answer like that one of the other secretaries was fun to talk to.

One Wednesday evening, Barbara sat down to enjoy a lovely family dinner with Anthony, Victoria, and their other two children. Victoria’s long, wavy dark hair was clipped up in an exceptionally pretty way, and she was wearing the blue satin dress that they’d given her for Christmas. She said she’d had a good day at work and had every other reason to be happy. Yet she was barely touching her homemade stroganoff, a meal that she ordinarily loved. Was something going on with her?

“Are you feeling all right, Victoria?”

“I’m fine, Mother, thank you.” Victoria hesitated. “In fact, I have something I’d like to tell you.”

Barbara sat up so quickly she dropped her fork. This was it! It was finally happening!

“I’ve decided I’m applying to the Ledeaux Fashion Institute in Brooklyn!”

Barbara’s racing heart dropped into her stomach.

“I…I beg your pardon?”

“Hear me out. I already have my business degree. If I learn how to design clothing, I could start my own company. The Charlotte Post says that fashion will be one of the ten most profitable industries in the twenty-first century.”

“It’s true, Mother,” Victoria’s younger sister chimed in. “I’ve seen some of her sketches. They’re really amazing. There’s this entire line she’s drawn that’s red velvet juxtaposed with…”

“If you make _any_ attempt to get into fashion school,” Barbara finally snapped, “We’re cutting you off.”

_“What?”_

“You heard me, Victoria. If you choose to pursue this genuinely thoughtless plan, you will no longer be allowed to live in my home, nor will you have access to your trust fund, nor will you have a job at Cardinal Power any longer. Right, dearest?” Anthony nodded in agreement. “You’ll have no money, no credentials, no references, no power. You’ll live your life on the streets.”

Victoria’s storm grey eyes glared back at Barbara. “Why would you do that to me? Why won’t you even consider helping me do something I love?”

“Because, my darling, I know you could do so much better.”

It was then that Barbara’s son spoke for the first time since they’d sat down. “You know, as fun as this is, I think that we should eat in front of the TV like a normal family tomorrow night. How ‘bout it Mom? We can all wear jeans and T-shirts and order pizza.”

“Anthony Montgomery junior, that’s enough! Don’t you _ever_ speak to me that way again!”

For a few minutes, an eerie silence shrouded the Montgomery clan. Everyone but Victoria ate. Kate Porter passed through to clear the table and set out dessert. The twins started mumbling about the upcoming basketball game at school. Then Anthony interrupted.

“Victoria,” he began. “If you’ve been experiencing impure thoughts about…people other than men...your mother and I can find a way to help you with that. I’ve heard good things about psychiatric facilities in Utah.”

“No, Father,” said Victoria flatly. “Not all fashion designers are gay.”

“Well then, what’s your problem?” Barbara snapped. “By the time I was your age, I was celebrating my third anniversary. Your cousin Margaret is sixteen months younger than you, and she’s engaged to an attorney. Look at _you._ ”

That, out of everything being spoken, was apparently over the line. Victoria slammed her fork down on the table and stormed upstairs.

Barbara couldn’t figure out what was wrong. What could her twenty-two-year-old beautiful, classy, intelligent, educated daughter possibly be doing to repel men?


	2. This Fear of Gods

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Victoria must hide her blossoming relationship from her family. The more serious it gets, the harder it becomes.

Dirty brown clapboard surrounded Victoria on all sides, save for one wooden door that was chipped at the bottom and probably needed to be replaced two years ago. It was meant to be a gardening shed, back when her parents bought the clean white townhouse that sat fifty feet of bluegrass away, but the only things kept in here now were a few fishing poles, a rickety card table, and Father’s old golf clubs. The ones he didn’t use anymore. Almost no one had had occasion to come out here in years, a fact that Victoria knew well and was counting on.

A few months ago, she’d held the right to describe herself as a lot of things. Daughter, sister, friend, connoisseur of makeup and fashion, valedictorian of Oppenheimer School for the Gifted, rising business student. But now, as she stood quietly next to a bucket that smelled like oil and rust, eyes glued to her ticking silver watch, Victoria defined herself only by the moments to come.

Her heart began to race as she heard the grass around the shed rustling. Footsteps? The rustling stopped. Two sneakers appeared under the door. Three soft taps followed by a gentle shake of the doorknob. Victoria exhaled with relief as she got up to open the door. And there he was.

“I was starting to worry,” she whispered softly, as she shut the door behind her.

“What, that I’d forgotten about you?” replied the man who was already using his hands, strong and calloused from years of manual labor, to cup her soft pink cheeks in his hands.

“Of course not,” Victoria replied. “Just that something had happened.” She looked up into his beautiful copper eyes that almost matched his skin, tan from the North Carolina sun. She let him run his hands through her hair and press his sweet rough lips to hers, pulling her in close so enough to feel his abs through his tank top. She felt his pulse, strong as hers was in this moment. Almost as if their hearts were beating as one.

Before she had a chance to respond to the kiss, however, he pulled back.

“Are you sure you want to do this here? Now?”

Victoria nodded, then promptly slipped her tongue in his mouth. The kisses grew longer, deeper, hungrier. Victoria felt for the bottom hem of his shirt and pulled it off with both of her hands.

“Wait,” she suddenly said. “Do _you_ have time for this? I know you do Mrs. Lockwood’s tank at one o’clock, and she can be very…”

In answer, he placed a finger to her lips and slid it down her neck to the top button on her cream designer blouse.

“Nice blouse,” he whispered. “But it would look better on the floor.”

He placed his fingers on hers, and together, they undid the buttons. They clattered against the dirty damp wood floor moments before their belts, soon followed by a red pencil skirt and denim jeans and a heap of undergarments. Then, to her surprise, he lifted her up, and while kissing her, set her down on the edge of the card table. He didn’t know it was wobbly, though, and Victoria was too caught up in the moment to remember, so they both giggled with surprise when the rickety thing slammed back against the wall.

“I love you, Victoria Montgomery,” he whispered.

“I love you too,” she replied. “Gavin Campbell.”

* * *

Later that afternoon, when the sun was hiding behind a thin layer of clouds that blanketed the town in a pleasant layer of warmth, Gavin emerged from the shed. He began his three-block pilgrimage to the spot where he’d parked his van. A few minutes later, Victoria made her way over to Tree Hill High.

Mother and Father had proudly sent Victoria off to a prestigious private school when she turned fourteen. Yet her siblings both attended the local high school, “community high school” their parents called it disdainfully. When AJ asked at dinner why he and Justine weren’t going away to Cutler Academy, Father insisted that they didn’t need it. “You two were always the sensible ones.”

The reality was that Father probably couldn’t afford two private school tuitions on top of Victoria’s college expenses. Fortunately, Justine and AJ seemed to enjoy public school. Especially AJ, who was on the basketball team. Victoria’s school hadn’t had any sports, and all the extracurriculars it did have had been strictly academic. As Victoria walked past the glossy white and brown brick exterior and saw the excited teenagers, chattering away with one another as they went towards their cars or the gym, she wondered what aspects of normal teenage life she’d missed out on.

Right now, Justine and her best friend Karen were practicing for cheerleading tryouts on the vacant football field, along with a few other girls. Freshly clipped grass flew about and clung to clean white sneakers as the girls cartwheeled across the lawn. The smell of summer lingered in the air as Justine attempted a roundoff and a carefully placed hair clip fell, letting a cascade of glossy brown curls pour down her back as she stuck the landing. She and Karen both burst out laughing as they retrieved the clip and Justine brushed her hair from round, pink cheeks and pretty pearl earrings.

“Oh, hey, V!” Justine called as she secured her tidy ponytail. Karen also turned around and waved. She was the only one of these girls that Victoria knew, at least by name. The rest had been mentioned in passing at least once, “the redhead with blue lipstick,” “this girl who wears cat earrings even to homecoming,” and “the one with the fugly orange sweater.” All but Justine shamelessly violated Victoria’s mother’s rules about appearance. “A minimum of four items of makeup for every activity, no visible blemishes. All clothing must be appropriately form fitting. Flannel only for pajamas, wool only for winter, and never, in any form or on any occasion, denim.”

Justine broke away from the cluster of teens. “Is everything okay?”

“I came to see if you wanted to go for ice cream.”

Justine’s smile brightened. “Sure!” She turned back to say goodbye and took back a tube of lipstick that she’d loaned to Cat Earrings.

“Should we see if AJ wants to come?” Victoria asked.

“Nah, he has practice,” said Justine.

“His loss.” Victoria was smiling, though. She’d been hoping for some sister time.

“So, how was your day?” asked Justine. “Did you see that guy again?”

Victoria looked away. _“Maybe.”_

Justine grinned and elbowed her. “You _did!_ So what happened? Did you go to a movie?”

“Of course not!”

Justine rolled her eyes. “Right, because you can’t be “seen in public” together.”

“We _can’t_ be seen in public together!”

“Which obviously means he’s a convicted felon and seeing you would be a violation of his parole because you’re his accomplice. But anyway, if you didn’t go _out,_ then you must have stayed in and…gone to his place?”

“Nope.”

Justine’s eyes widened. “You brought him to the _house?”_

“Not the _house_! The shed!”

“Seriously? What is there to do in the…” Justine gasped. “You…” Victoria nodded. _“No!_ What was it like? Tell me everything!”

“A lady doesn’t kiss and tell,” Victoria said, before promptly leaning over and whispering , _“No matter how nice the kisser’s abs and ass are.”_

Justine barely held back a squeal. _“Oh my god.”_

After a few more minutes of whispering and fussing, they reached the corner of Front and Grace, and entered the Over Easy Diner. They ordered a brownie sundae to eat at the counter and listened to the waitresses gently tease them about forgetting to order anything other than dessert. Once they were all occupied with other things, Victoria lowered her voice.

“I need you to be my alibi.”

“I knew it, you really are his accomplice!

“Jussie, I’m serious. If anyone asks what I did today, you need to them that you came home and found me asleep in bed with-”

“A felon?”

“A _headache_. I woke up when you opened the blinds in our room, I felt better, and then we went for a walk and to have ice cream.”

“Fine,” Justine said. “I’ll do it. But I still don’t understand why you’re being so secretive. You’ve heard the way that Mother goes on about Cousin Margaret and how she’s so jealous of Aunt Syl getting to plan a spring wedding. She’s _desperate_ for you to find someone.”

“He doesn’t…” Victoria paused to sign the check and put the envelope back on the counter. “He doesn’t exactly run in Mother’s circles.”

“What do you mean?”

Victoria was interrupted when the waitress came over with their orders, and for a few moments, all Victoria and Justine’s thoughts were deflected to hot and cold sweetness that melted on their tongues, bit by bit.

“So, what about you?” asked Victoria. “Any boys in your life?”

Justine shook her head, then swallowed a chunk of brownie. “I think I’ll hold out for college. High school boys are dumb. Karen’s relationship drama would be enough to scare me off from dating even without you and your mysterious felon.”

“He’s _not_ a felon,” Victoria said again. “He’s…a cleaner.”

Justine blinked. “What? He's a housekeeper, like Kate?”

“Not exactly. He only cleans septic tanks."

Justine didn’t say anything as they polished off the rest of their ice cream.

“Victoria,” she finally whispered. “I think Mom might be happier if you told her you were dating a felon.”

* * *

Four years at UNC had kept Victoria busy. Term papers, study groups, bake sales, pep rallies, shopping trips, tailgating, and a few boyfriends that quickly became ex-boyfriends made up the most liberating experience of her life. Her business classes had been tolerable, though not terribly fascinating. But it had all been worth it for that semester in Paris. Part of her coursework had involved examining the bookkeeping of a particularly large fashion institute, and she had come back to America with her head full of dreams and her heart full of hopes. Finally, she had discovered what she wanted to do with the rest of her life.

For the rest of college, she’d walked around with a messenger bag crammed with sketchpads and fashion magazines. She decided she wasn’t going to apply to any fancy business internships like her friends were doing, because ultimately that wasn’t the world she wanted to be part of. Fashion was. She’d continued to perform well in her classes, but the only assignments she’d enjoyed were the one where she was required to create a hypothetical business. Because then, she got to flesh out ideas for Vicki Anne Designs. Eventually to be known simply as Vicki Anne. Whatever season was coming up, she had her whole line planned out, right down to accessories. She sketched up a sample issue of her own magazine. She could see rich housewives in New York and Los Angeles and Spain bragging about their new Vicki Anne blouses and dresses and purses. She could see her clothes floating down runways, in movies.

Not once had she fantasized about sharing a bedroom with her seventeen-year-old sister while directly reporting to her father four hours a day five days a week. In the afternoons, Victoria was free to visit both of the interesting buildings that Tree Hill had to offer. That is, whenever she was able to borrow one of the family cars.

Maybe Mother’s strategy was to make her life so boring and meaningless that getting married would be the only way out. Well, the joke was on Mother, because if Victoria did get married anytime soon, it would be to Gavin.

Over the weeks, they continued to see each other. Usually they met in the shed or at Gavin’s apartment when his roommates weren’t home. They went out a few times, to cheap insignificant restaurants a few towns over. For those occasions, Victoria had purchased for herself an article of clothing that her mother would have deemed completely unacceptable; a hoodie. She would wear that and sunglasses to ride in the front seat of the van from her part of town to Gavin’s part of town. The only person who had any idea of this was Justine, who continued to cover for Victoria and tell everyone that she was sleeping when lovers trysts took place in the evenings or at night. When all else failed, Gavin would spread blankets out in the back of his van.

Sometimes Victoria would bring a picnic for them to eat. On one particular day, she brought fresh strawberries and a can of whipped cream. There’d been enough left over of the latter to use for other things. Afterwards, they held each other for a few minutes until Gavin fell asleep and left Victoria alone with her thoughts. This was something she did not enjoy, as her thoughts had not made very good company of late.

Van sex brought back memories of Victoria’s first college boyfriend. His car had been much smaller than the van, but nicer, with a working radio. That had been nice. Up until he dumped Victoria for a girl who didn’t ask him to turn off ESPN while they made out. Gavin would never do that. He was a good guy. He sang love songs to her and made time for her and brought her chocolate and wine when he knew she was having a hard week. Victoria felt so grateful to have found him. But what she didn’t like was that somehow, he had become the only thing in her life that _ever_ made her feel good about herself. Like she was enough.

Victoria rolled over on her side and in doing so accidentally tipped over the empty whipped cream can. It rolled and hit the rear hatch. She’d forgotten they were parked on a hill until then.

She pressed her lips to Gavin’s cheek, then to his lips, and gently kissed him awake, stopping to lay back down on him only when he opened his eyes.

“What are you thinking about?” he whispered as he caressed her cheek with his right hand fingers.

Victoria smiled. “How much you mean to me.” It was true, in a roundabout way. And that earned her another kiss.

“So, what should we do tomorrow?” Gavin asked. “I get off at 2:00. We could go back to that taco place in River City.”

“I wish I could, but Mother wants to pick me up from work and go for a drive. What about later?”

“My band is playing at The Ravens’ Nest. But you’re welcome to come, if you want.”

“I’ll try to sneak away.”

These were the thoughts that sustained her. Through the following day’s work, which required not one but two cups of coffee to get through, and then through Mother’s perky excitement as they idly travelled through town crunching dry leaves under sparkly new tires. Victoria draped one arm over the passenger’s side of the convertible, indifferent to the wind's threats to mess up her hair as wayward bits of foliage caught the arms of her sweater.

Normally, taking a drive around Tree Hill meant driving the scenic loop around the entirety of the town, but on this occasion Mother had insisted on driving into the mansion cul de sac. Even though it meant threading the needle between parked corvettes and porsches that were worth more than their house.

“Are we visiting anyone?” asked Victoria.

“Not really. I want you to see Penelope’s house.”

Victoria was surprised to hear this. Penelope Davis was a woman who Mother had taken to speaking of as a dear friend. Victoria had never met her before, but she’d heard stories, less about Penelope herself than Penelope’s mansion and beautiful clothes and car and the like. Victoria had secretly suspected that Penelope was as fake as Mother’s mink coat.

“Will I get to meet Penelope?”

“I hope so. She told me she was going to New York to see _Starlight Express_ , but she may be back.”

Several minutes later, the car abruptly slowed to a halt.

“Oh dear,” Mother muttered.

“What’s wrong?” asked Victoria.

“I have no idea. It just died." Mother picked up the car phone and pressed a few buttons, then held it up to her ear. "This doesn't work either."

“Huh," said Victoria. "I guess we should have sprung for one of those new cellular phones after all."

Mother was not amused. “This is terribly inconvenient Victoria. These shoes of mine were _not_ made for walking.”

Victoria sighed and grabbed her purse. “You stay with the car. I’ll go find help.”

“Try the house with the red door first!” Mother called. “Penelope’s housekeeper knows me by name.”

To her surprise, the red door was actually answered. But not by any housekeeper. There stood a man in a brown jacket who flashed a dazzling million-dollar smile of perfect white teeth. He was reminiscent of Father’s interchangeable colleagues, clothes and all. But younger. His saving grace was a mop of sloppy black hair that fell over one eye.

“Can I help you, madam?”

“Perhaps. Does a Penelope Davis live here?”

“She does, but she’s out of town. And you are?”

Victoria hesitated. “Victoria Montgomery.”

The man flashed his smile again. “Oh, you’re Barbara’s daughter? My mother speaks of her nearly every day!”

Victoria tried to hide her surprise. “Our car actually broke down a little ways down the road. Is there a phone I may use?”

“Of course.” He stepped out of the house. “Right this way. We can use my car phone to call for help while I give you a ride back to your mother.”

Victoria smiled playfully. “I don’t make a habit of taking rides from strange men.”

“Then allow me to introduce myself.” He held out his hand for her to shake. “Robert Theodore Davis junior. Friends call me Ted.”

“Victoria Anne Montgomery. Friends call me Victoria.”

Ted flashed his smile again. “Pleased to meet you, Victoria. Now that we’re not strangers anymore, you _must_ let me help you.”

Victoria smiled, mostly out of amusement. She accepted Ted’s offer and used his car phone to call Kate Porter and ask her to come get them. While they waited, Mother greeted Ted warmly and chatted with him for a few minutes while Victoria stayed in Ted’s car and called a mechanic to pick up the vehicle. After Victoria hung up the phone, Mother informed her that Ted had just generously invited the whole family over for dinner. Victoria smiled and waited until she was in the car alone with Mother and Kate to explain that she’d planned to visit with someone later that day.

“Well, dear daughter, your plans have been cancelled,” Mother said unsympathetically. "Now, let's talk about what you're going to wear."

* * *

“Am I underdressed, V?”

Victoria stood up from her vanity and brushed down the cream frills that adorned her bosom, taking a wayward glance in the mirror as she did so to ensure that her makeup was in place. In contrast to Victoria’s monochromatic dress, Justine was wearing floral print with high heels.

“Maybe a little bit more on the lipstick,” Victoria suggested, after giving her sister a quick once-over. “But I doubt Mother’s going to give much thought to how you look tonight. She’ll be too busy mocking me in front of a fresh audience.”

“Why? Is this another one of her matchmaking dinners?”

“No, it can’t be,” said Victoria as she selected an ebony jeweled necklace and clasped it behind her neck. “Ted Davis invited us over himself.”

“Huh,” said Justine. “Wait…any relation to the famous Penelope?”

“The very one.” Victoria glanced at her reflection. “What earrings do you think I should wear?”

Justine walked over peered inside Victoria’s jewelry box. “Wear the black pearls,” she instructed. “They match your necklace.” She paused for a minute while Victoria contemplated her suggestion. “So…when are you planning on telling her about Gavin?”

The question caught Victoria off guard. “What? Jussie, you know I can’t tell her. You said yourself that she’d be happier with a felon.”

“I’m not saying it’ll be fun. But you and Gavin have become a lot more serious since that day in the shed. You’ll have to tell her eventually.”

“Do you want me to get kicked out? Do you want be to be _homeless?”_

“You’re an adult. You can find somewhere else to live.”

Victoria smiled at her sister’s naivety. If only it were that simple.

“Come here. Why don’t you borrow the heart earrings you love so much?” Justine clapped with excitement, getting the first genuine smile of the night out of Victoria. The heart-shaped earrings had been Victoria’s high school graduation presents from her grandmother and were made out of solid platinum. Justine had admired them for years, but Victoria had never actually let anyone else wear them before now. She put them in her sister’s ears herself while Justine gawked at her image in the mirror.

“You look marvelous, dear,” said Victoria. “If you promise to take good care of them, I’ll even let you wear them to homecoming tomorrow.”

“Really? Thank you so much!”

Victoria smiled and accepted her sister’s embrace. It felt nice to be able to please someone for a change.

A few seconds later, they heard their brother’s obnoxious rap on the bedroom door. “Mom and Dad are ready! Let’s go get this over with!”

“We’re coming!” Justine called, releasing her sister to resume the final stages of getting ready to face another night of fine dining.


	3. All The Things She Said

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Victoria decides it's time to break away from her family once and for all, but things don't exactly go according to plan.

For the most part, the dinner the Montgomery family shared with Ted Davis went better than anyone had imagined it would. The food, prepared by the Davis family’s private chef, was delicious, and their host was charming to a fault. After a few minutes of conversation, Victoria and Ted discovered they had gone through the same program at UNC one too many years apart to have encountered each other and spent the better part of the evening reminiscing and comparing notes. Father and Mother talked to each other about their day. Justine quietly enjoyed the eggplant casserole and the feeling of hundreds of dollars on each earlobe. And AJ finished his meal first and fell asleep.

When it was time for the family to go home, Justine nudged her brother awake and walked to the car with him ahead of everyone else to spare him further embarrassment. Father followed them after graciously thanking Ted for inviting them over. After he was out the door, Ted said goodnight to Mother, and then finally to Victoria. He shook her hand firmly, holding on a second longer than necessary. Then he cleared his throat.

“Will I be seeing you and your family at the Armstrong charity ball tomorrow night?”

“We were planning on going. But my brother has his homecoming game, and Justine is cheerleading.”

“My husband and I both need to be there to support them, as you can imagine,” Mother said from behind Victoria as she wrapped her arm around her and squeezed her shoulder. Ted flashed Mother a smile, then moved his gaze back to Victoria.

“So you’re free then? It just so happens that I’m looking for a plus one. Why don’t I pick you up around seven? I promise I’ll bring a nice car. One that won't break down along the way.”

Victoria tried not to let the mild panic show on her face as she laughed nervously. He flashed another smile, a hopeful one this time. Because she had only a matter of seconds to respond, and no excuses came to mind under Mother’s urgent gaze, what came out of her mouth was, “Absolutely.”

* * *

When Gavin Campbell was woken by a knock on his door late in the evening, his first thought was to wonder what would bring maintenance to his room so late. He was stunned to find his girlfriend on the doorstep, dressed to the nines with makeup running down her cheeks.

“Hey,” Gavin whispered. “What’s wrong?”

A tear ran down Victoria’s cheek as she whispered back. “Marry me.”

He stepped outside to join her, so caught between concern and shock that he barely remembered to close the door so that he wouldn’t wake his roommates.

“Victoria, what’s going on?”

“I have it all figured out. I’ll stay with you here for a couple of weeks, and then we’ll take the van up the coast and move to Brooklyn. We can get an apartment, and jobs. You can still clean septic tanks if you want…we’ll have the van, and you can work on your music, too. And then as soon as we have enough money saved up, I’ll apply to Ladeaux.” She paused to take a breath. “What do you think?”

“I think I’m wondering where all of this is suddenly coming from.”

Victoria’s face fell. “You hate it, don’t you?”

“No!” Gavin placed his hands on his girlfriend’s shoulders. “I love it. But are you sure that this is what you want? A life with me would be a lot different from the life you’ve been living. I don’t even know how I’m going to save enough money to pay for _gas_ , let alone living in Brooklyn.”

“I’ll sell my jewelry. We can do this, Gavin. I don’t care about money. I just care about having my dream, and your dream, and us.”

“I can’t even afford to buy you a ring right now.”

“I don’t need a ring. We don’t even need to have a ceremony. I just want you.”

The sweet kiss he pulled her into told her that his answer was yes.

“I love you, Victoria Anne Montgomery.”

“Victoria Montgomery Campbell.”

* * *

The moment that Victoria clicked her bedroom door shut behind her, she turned on the flashlight by her bed and began packing. The glow was dim, as not to wake up Justine, but she knew what she needed, and where it was located. Considering that clothing was her passion, Victoria’s ability to condense her wardrobe to the confines of a banker’s box and a duffle bag (the only containers she had readily available) along with her every other earthy possession was remarkable. Her three nicest dresses, three pairs of slacks, a dozen shirts, four pairs of shoes, and she was satisfied. She could buy new clothes once she got to New York. Right now, what mattered was getting out of the house as quickly and efficiently as possible.

Thereafter, Victoria packed her entire jewelry box, vowing to take it to the nicest pawn shop she could find at her earliest opportunity. She had a few gold necklaces that would be worth some money. So would her pearls. Her biggest financial asset was the platinum earrings she had loaned her sister, and she wasn’t sure exactly where they’d ended up after dinner. No matter. She could get them back in the morning. The important thing was that by this time tomorrow, she was finally going to be free.

* * *

“You need the earrings back early? Why? Is Mother making you wear them on your “big date” with Ted Davis?”

Victoria didn’t say anything as she collected the beautiful items out of the drawer of her sister’s nightstand and closed her hand around them, the backs of the earrings digging into her palm like pins.

She would hate giving them away, but she would do it for Gavin.

“Are you gonna fake sick and go out with Gavin instead?”

“Something like that,” Victoria hesitated. “I’m actually leaving. Gavin is coming by to pick me up.”

“For a date?”

Victoria sighed. “No. Forever.” Justine’s eyebrows shot up. “We’re getting married and moving to Brooklyn immediately.”

 _“What?”_ Justine sat up in bed and dropped her book onto the pastel sheets. “Why right now?”

“Because we want to be together, and Mother and Father would never understand.”

“So you’re just…running away?”

“No, adults don’t _run away._ They move out.”

“Not in _secret!”_ Justine snapped.

“Jussie, we’ve already had this conversation! I’m going.”

Victoria paused for a moment, then turned and dared to look at her sister’s face. The round brown eyes held more sadness than contempt, which if anything, made the situation even more painful.

“I’ll write you a letter as soon as we get there, okay? I promise. I’ll send you my phone number. You can call me when everyone’s asleep, like I’ve been calling Gavin. How does that sound?”

Out of all the dozens of things she felt like she should have said in that moment, all Justine could manage was, “Okay.”

Victoria patted her sister’s back before making her exit.

“Have fun at homecoming,” Victoria whispered as the door swung shut. Justine moaned in response.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, Justine was still in bed, heavy with loneliness and the burden of the secrets she’d been entrusted with. She hated lying to her parents, even though she didn’t always agree with them, but she hated the thought of losing Victoria more. Most of all, she hated watching the people she loved most in the world make terrible decisions and being unable to do a single thing but watch.

Justine nearly screamed when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up into Mother’s concerned brown eyes. She hadn’t even heard her come in.

“Kate Porter told me you were still in bed. Are you feeling well, my love?”

“Not really,” she almost snapped.

Mother sighed. “Eugenia Justine Montgomery, I know that you must feel as if I’ve been strict with you children lately. Your sister in particular. But I hope you understand, dear daughter, that I’m only doing it because I have her best interests at heart. All I’ve ever wanted is for my son and daughters to be happy. I hope you know that. It’s all I want.” Mother bent over to give her youngest a kiss on the cheek before turning to exit the room.

“But if all you want is for us to be happy…” Mother turned around. “Then why won’t you let Victoria apply to fashion school?”

Mother sighed. “Because even though Victoria thinks that having her own store is what would make her happy, it’s not. You kids are too young to know how to make the best choices for yourselves. That’s why I’m here.”

Justine looked away. “What _do_ you think would make Victoria happy?”

“At this stage of her life, what would make her happy is finding a good man to marry and start a family with.” Justine sniffed. “Someday, she _will_ see that. I just have to keep pushing her in the right direction until she does.”

“That’s really all you want?” asked Justine carefully. “For Victoria to find a husband?”

Mother nodded. “Yes. That’s all I want for her.”

“Even if he weren’t rich or famous or a college graduate and lived in an apartment with a bunch of roommates?”

“Justine, darling, whatever are you talking about?”

Justine looked up into her mother’s concerned brown eyes.

“Please, _please,_ don’t make her go out with Ted Davis.”

Mother raised her eyebrows. “Why shouldn’t I?”

“Victoria is already engaged to somebody else.”

For the next thirty seconds, the only sounds that could be heard in the room were the ticking of the clock on the wall and Justine’s heart pounding.

“I had no idea,” said Mother sweetly with a stroke of her daughter’s hair. “What’s he like? Is he good to her?”

“He loves her very much. He’d do anything for her.”

“Well then, who would I be to interfere with that?”

Justine’s cheeks flooded with relief. Mother smiled.

“Justine, darling, I promise you that if you tell me who this man is, and where I might be able to find him, I will make sure your sister’s wedding is everything I have ever dreamed it would be.”

* * *

Victoria waited inside the shed until she saw Gavin’s van pull up to the alley behind her parents’ house. She locked up the shed on her way out and shoved the keys into the pocket of her overnight bag so that they wouldn’t clink, then walked slowly, quietly. He spotted her coming and waited by the vehicle.

“Hi,” she whispered breathlessly, heart already pounding as she approached him. He was wearing blue jeans and a plain white tank top that clung to his chest. It was her favorite outfit of his, in part because it resembled when he’d been wearing the day she’d met him. Once Victoria was close enough, Gavin put both of his hands on her cheeks and kissed her.

“One last time,” he whispered once he let go. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

“With all my heart.”

Gavin opened the passenger door to his van, lifted her banker’s box, and put it inside. He then placed the duffle bag in beside it and slammed the door. “Are you ready?”

“Well, well. What do we have here?”

Victoria’s heart dropped down to her stomach, and Gavin’s skipped a beat when he saw the look on Victoria’s face.

“Mother…” Victoria began. Mother put her finger to her lips.

“Shh. What I’m looking at here is a common working class man. He’s standing by his white van, obviously getting ready to leave my house. He has a box in the backseat. If I didn’t know better, I would say that that box contains quite a number of rare, valuable items from my home. Designer clothing. Gold. Pearls. In particular, an extremely valuable set of platinum diamond earrings.”

“Mother, don’t!” snapped Victoria. “You know damn well that that stuff is _mine_ , and that I’m choosing to leave you because you care about your plans for me more than you care about my happiness.”

“Oh, but you’re wrong, Victoria. On both accounts. The items in your jewelry box may have been gifts to you, but they are insured under _my_ name. And I do care about your happiness. Very much. That’s why if you don’t get upstairs and unpack your things, I’m calling the police on this…person.”

“So what? I’ll tell the police that _I_ put those things in his van, and then I’ll tell them what a frickin ice queen you are!”

“By the time you have the chance to prove anything, he’ll have already been arrested.” No one said anything for a moment. “Did you happen to pack your red dress? I think it would be perfect for the ball tonight, don’t you?”

“You’re not making her go anywhere,” Gavin suddenly interrupted. “Go ahead and call the cops. I don’t care.”

Victoria squeezed his hand for a moment. “As you wish,” said Mother.

“No,” Victoria cut in. “I’ll stay here, and I’ll go to the ball tonight. Just leave Gavin alone.” Gavin opened his mouth to reassure her, but Victoria shook her head and turned to face him. “Mother is my problem, not yours. Just give me my stuff back,” she pleaded. She and Gavin looked into each other’s eyes for a moment, then both looked away. They wanted to kiss each other goodbye but didn’t dare.

“Excellent decision, dear daughter,” said Mother, draping an arm around Victoria’s shoulders as she led her back up to the house. “I’m so proud of you.” In that moment, if looks could have killed, Mother would have been no more. “You’ll thank me someday.”

Victoria pulled away and turned to face the older woman. “Mother, you and Penelope have been friends for a while. Our car didn’t really just so happen to… _break down_ near his home yesterday. Did it?”

“I really have no idea what you mean by that, Victoria.” Mother’s sinister smile told another tale.

Victoria nodded courteously before going upstairs to rest in preparation for the ball, wishing with every step that she had run away months ago.

* * *

Victoria thought she was going to make it through the evening without her mask slipping. She felt as attractive as she ever had in the red dress and her best silver heels, and, ironically, her platinum earrings to match. Ted brought flowers kissed her hand and opened the car door for her. He made polite small talk about the weather and local politics and how that picnic area by the river might be turned into a basketball court and did Tree Hill really need another basketball court anyway? They greeted a few of Ted’s acquaintances and neighbors before they started dancing.

At the end of the third song, Ted wordlessly took her hand and led her off the floor.

“Can I speak with you privately for a moment?” asked Ted softly. She nodded in acceptance. Once they were in a quiet corner of the room, he asked her what was wrong.

“What do you mean?” said Victoria. “I’m fine.”

“It’s quite alright,” said Ted. “You don’t have to talk about it. You just seem like you’d rather be anywhere than here right now.”

“Not _anywhere_. Not at home with my parents.”

“In that case, will you at least allow me to take you somewhere that you might hate a little less?”

“What did you have in mind?”

Ted grinned, leaned in, and whispered, “How do you feel about a little thing called ice cream?”

* * *

As surprised as Victoria had been by the invitation, she was more than happy to escape from the land of fake smiles and gossip. It was a short drive from the cul de sac to the Over Easy Diner. She felt a little out of place entering the quaint, cheerful restaurant in her evening gown. But surely, she realized, Ted must feel even more out of place than her. He had probably never been in here in his life.

“Hi, Mr. Davis!” one of the waitresses greeted him cheerfully. “Table for two?”

“Yes please, Jodie. How’s Bob doing? Has he found a job yet?”

“No, but he has an interview with the body shop on Tuesday, so fingers crossed! Oh, you can go ahead and have a seat at your usual table, and I’ll be with you shortly.”

As Ted led Victoria over to their table, he whispered to her, “Order the triple cheeseburger with fries on the side. A triple cheeseburger is a burger with three patties and a slice of cheese between each of them, but they’ll put in more if you ask. Skip the salad so that you have room for dessert.”

“I _know_ what a triple cheeseburger is,” said Victoria. “And there’s no way I could finish an entire one right now.”

“Have you ever actually tried to eat a triple cheeseburger?” Ted challenged.

“I can’t say I have. But I’ve been eating here for years.”

“I see. Did you grow up in Tree Hill?”

“Born and raised.”

“Were you a cheerleader, like your little sister?”

“Oh no, I wasn’t a Raven. I went to Oppenheimer School for the Gifted. My father didn’t want me going to a normal public school. He was afraid I’d get pregnant.”

Victoria shook with a start when an unfamiliar piece of plastic landed in her lap out of nowhere. She heard a little girl scream behind her.

“Nicholas James, go get your sister’s doll back right now! And apologize to the nice lady you threw it at!” scolded a woman. Victoria turned to face the mother, who was attempting to nurse an infant and comfort a sobbing toddler. Three other children surrounded her in addition to the boy who was coming over to retrieve the Barbie doll.

“I’m sorry, lady,” said the kid bitterly as he yanked the doll out of Victoria’s hand. “You should sell that dress and buy something pretty.” Victoria looked away from the kid and glanced over her shoulder at the mother, who hadn’t noticed the exchange, and for a moment considered thanking her for reaffirming Victoria’s desire to never have children.

“I think your dress is stunning,” Ted remarked, redirecting Victoria’s attention.

“Thanks.”

And thus begin an evening filled with horror stories of mishaps at glamorous parties between large bites of beef and cheese and ketchup with the occasional nibble of lettuce. Once Victoria had polished off her food, Ted insisted on ordering a large brownie sundae and ended up eating most of it.

“The waitress should be coming over with our check any minute,” Victoria remarked. “Hopefully there’ll be someone we can complain to about those kids that bothered us earlier.”

“Don’t do that,” said Ted quickly. “That was the James family. They come here all the time, and their children are generally beautifully behaved. They don’t deserve to get the boot over one ugly moment.”

“You come here quite a lot.”

“Guilty pleasure,” said Ted with a wink. “Very guilty.”

“It’s kind of nice.”

“Perhaps we could do this again sometime,” said Ted hopefully.

“Ted, I had a great time with you. I really did. And thank you so much for not making me stay at that god-awful party. But I’m actually…I’m with someone.”

“Oh?”

“We’re planning on getting married, actually.”

“Then why did you agree to come out with me tonight?”

“I was sort of blackmailed,” Victoria admitted. “I’m sorry.” She hadn’t been expecting him to be this gracious and thoughtful.

“So you do like me?”

“I like you as a person. Maybe even as a friend.”

“And, if you weren’t already with someone else?”

“I’m an engaged woman, Ted.”

Ted said nothing as he waved Jodie over to bring him their check.

* * *

Though he remained courteous to a fault, Ted Davis said nothing until they had reached the front walk to Victoria’s house.

“Do you think they’re watching us right now?” he asked.

Victoria glanced up and saw that her parents’ bedroom light was still on. “Probably.”

“How about a kiss goodnight then? For appearance’s sake.”

“Thank you for the offer,” said Victoria cautiously, unsure whether she should have added a hint of sarcasm. “How about a cheek kiss?”

“As you wish.” He gave her a light peck on her left cheek, so close to her lips that his own cheekbone brushed against them, and then went on his way.

Victoria checked her watch as soon as she closed the front door behind her. It was much too late to call Gavin.

Justine was still in the bathroom washing off her makeup when Victoria got upstairs. As soon as she saw her older sister in her dress, she grinned.

“Victoria, you look beautiful! Where did you and Gavin go tonight?”

Victoria shook her head. “This dress was for the Armstrong Charity Ball.”

“And…you went there with Gavin, right?” Justine’s face fell when Victoria didn’t say anything. “Why would Mother make you go out with Ted tonight? She promised that she would give you her blessing for the wedding.”

Victoria flinched as if she’d been punched in the stomach. A look of horror flashed across Justine’s eyes, too late.

“You… _told_ Mother about me and Gavin?”

“Only because she said that all she wanted was for you to find someone to marry,” Justine stammered. “And it…it really did seem like she...”

Victoria stopped Justine midsentence with a slap.

“I _trusted_ you.”

It was a long, lonely night for both of them.


	4. I Wish You Were Here

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Victoria is forced to make an important decision.

Victoria’s chest welled up with anger as she begrudgingly retrieved a red blouse from her duffle bag and slipped it on. It was now empty, as was the box she’d had packed. In the past two weeks, she had used every single thing.

She hadn’t been able to see Gavin. A few brief phone calls during lunch breaks at work and that was it. Mother had taken away the phone line in Victoria and Justine’s bedroom, banned both of them from driving, and worst of all, confiscated Victoria’s credit cards. Now all she had access to was the pittance that she made at Riverlea. It was as though she were a teenager again, grounded for skipping class.

The morning following the date, she’d woken up late and put off leaving her bedroom for as long as possible. Eventually, she gave in to her hunger. When Victoria went downstairs Mother was organizing her closet with Kate Porter’s help, but by the time Victoria had fixed herself something to eat, Mother had appeared at the table.

“I hope you enjoyed yourself, my love.” Mother’s smile that told Victoria she’d seen the almost-kiss. When Victoria said nothing, Mother continued. “Mrs. Harrison tells me that you and Ted left before nine last night. Something about a headache.”

Victoria opened her mouth to rattle off an explanation, then realized that between that bit of information and the late night drop off, Mother must have surmised that Victoria and Ted had had a good time by themselves.

“Well, Mother. What do you want me to say?”

“Just be careful, dear. You know how people talk.” Mother winked.

“Well, isn’t that why you wanted me to go out with Ted in the first place? Because of how people talk? Because your daughter is practically an old maid and you’re afraid that people will start to wonder if she’s a fruit, or maybe the kind of woman who’s into working class boys and fashion school?”

Mother sighed. “Victoria, darling, why must you insist on being so unpleasant?”

Victoria clenched her jaw. “Because as much as you’d love for my dreams to disappear, _Mother_ , that’s not going to happen.”

“Do you really think marrying that boy is your _dream?_ That you’re just magically going to be happy with Mr. Washboard Stomach because you really want to?”

Mother stood up. She reached into a glass bowl on the kitchen counter and selected an individually wrapped chocolate. She turned it over in her hand, and turned back to Victoria.

“People like Devon are like chocolates, Victoria. There’s no harm in tasting something sweet every so often. But if you don’t limit yourself, it can make you ill. Candies cannot nourish your body any more than that septic boy can provide for you.”

“His name is _Gavin_. And he’s not just a septic boy. He’s the president of his own company.” She didn’t bother telling Mother that Gavin had love to provide her with, and that he cared for her more deeply than she felt anyone else ever had. That would have fallen on deaf ears.

“Oh, really?” Mother quipped, taking a bite of her chocolate. “Who works for him?”

“Just himself.”

Mother nodded. “And what exactly did you think you would do for money in New York, with you in clothing school?”

Victoria clenched her jaw. “I would work part time, of course.”

“To provide for yourself _and_ your husband?” Mother chuckled. “No man wants that, darling.”

“Gavin can make just as much money as I can.”

“Oh, I’m sure he can. Remind me, where did he go to college?” Victoria didn’t answer. “That’s what I thought.”

Ever since that day, Victoria hadn’t talked to anyone in her family about Gavin. She ached for his presence, to curl up in his arms and listen to him tell her that she was beautiful and everything was going to be okay. She comforted herself with the thought that most of the time, he was somewhere in Tree Hill with his van. Several times, on the way to or from work, she saw the van go by, and her pulse raced like it hadn’t since the early days of summer when she and Gavin first met.

Today, Mother had surprised Victoria by insisting on taking her out to the country club. Victoria descended the staircase in her red blouse and black skirt, smiling at her brother as she passed him by and ignoring Justine. Sometimes Victoria wondered if her anger at her sister was out of proportion, but then the events that brought it would rise to the surface and fury would consume her all over again.

“Is Father coming?” asked Victoria when she joined Mother in the car.

“No. He had to go in to work. But I really want you to come with me.”

Victoria turned away from her in the passenger seat and gazed out the window in silence. If this was Mother’s attempt at trying to smooth things over without actually apologizing, she had another think coming.

“What is that?” asked Victoria when she noticed Mother pulling a bulky bag out of the backseat of the car.

“I’m playing tennis with some friends today.”

“Oh.”

“Don’t worry, darling. I know you don’t play. You just seemed like you needed to get out of the house.”

Oh sure, _now_ she wanted to help Victoria get out of the house.

Victoria followed her mother into the club and they both signed in at the front desk. Then they rounded a corner, two faces appeared, and Victoria officially lost the last bit of trust she’d had in her mother.

“Why, fancy running into you here, Penelope!” said Mother smoothly to the middle-aged redhead planted at Ted’s side in a bright white tennis outfit. Ted offered a sheepish grin that suggested he’d had nothing to do with this meeting either. Victoria pasted on a smile for his benefit as their mothers exchanged pleasantries.

“Mrs. Montgomery is also here for the tennis tournament,” Penelope explained to Ted. “I mean, aren’t you, dear?”

“Of course. I’ll be playing on the third court if you want to come watch, Victoria.”

“Same to you, Ted.” Both women walked off without another word.

“I am so sorry,” said Victoria quietly. “My mother is nothing if not persistent.”

“It’s quite alright. Apparently, so is mine. In all fairness, she’s been trying to find me a girlfriend for years now, and so far, you’ve been the only one intelligent and attractive enough for both our tastes.” That got an unwitting smile out of Victoria. “But that’s no excuse for disrespecting your engagement.”

“At least she’s not the one keeping me from my fiancé.”

“That sounds mighty inconvenient.”

“I’ll say.”

Both hesitated for a moment, then Ted cleared his throat. “Well, you said we might be friends, did you not? I believe friends can lunch together.”

“They certainly can.” And it was off to the dining room.

Ted spent the better part of the next hour gently prying Victoria’s story out of her one bite of chicken enchilada at a time. It wasn’t very difficult. She had no one else to talk to about it and was beyond giving a damn who might overhear. She told him about her plans and her dreams, her parents and how unreasonable they were, Gavin, what he did for a living, and what he was like, eventually leading up to their secret relationship and her mother and sister’s betrayal.

“And then at the end, Mother justified everything she did by telling me that it would never work out because I make more money for him. Which probably means she thinks he’s stupid. Or maybe that I’m stupid. Or maybe both.”

“That seems like rather ridiculous reasoning to begin with.”

“Yeah. It is.”

“I fell for someone my parents hated once, too. Her name was Leah Peirce. She had the most beautiful smile, almost as lovely as yours. We went out for three months before I introduced her to my father. It turned out she was the daughter of his ex-employee. He was livid. He threatened to kick me out and stop paying my tuition.”

“That’s terrible,” said Victoria. “Are you and her still…”

Ted shook his head, much to Victoria’s dismay. This would be so much less awkward if he, too, was in love with someone.

“She was sixteen the last time I saw her,” said Ted, quickly adding, “As was I. My father ended up sending me away to an all-boys boarding school for two years to keep us apart. My parents only allowed me to come home after they’d purchased our home in Tree Hill and loaded up the moving van.”

Victoria looked away and bit her lip. She didn’t doubt that it was an awful thing for him to have gone through, but she didn’t think that two teenagers who’d known each other for three months could possibly have been as in love as she and Gavin were.

“We never had a chance,” said Ted. “But you do, Vicki Anne. That’s why if you ever need to go see your fiance, I’ll be more than happy to be your alibi.”

“Really? You’d do that?”

“Of course. I understand as well as you do that privilege comes with a price.” Then he leaned over the table and whispered, “In fact, if you want to go see him right now, I’ll walk out of the club with you.”

“Really?”

“Absolutely,” said Ted. He cleared his throat. “Ready to go?”

Victoria’s cheeks lit up. “Yes, Ted, that sounds lovely. Just let me make a quick stop at the ladies room, and then we’ll be on our way.”

A few moments after she left, the waiter came over to pick up their dirty dishes. “I couldn’t help but overhear,” said the waiter discreetly as he leaned across the table to retrieve Victoria’s plate. “You’re a good man, Mr. Davis. I don’t know many with enough grace to let go of a girl that stunning so easily.”

“Neither do I,” said Ted with a wink.

* * *

Victoria had Ted drop her off two blocks from the country club and took the matter of tracking down Gavin into her own hands. She had his schedule down, so she knew that he’d be in River City today. Once she arrived there by cab, she only had to walk up and down a few blocks before she spotted his van.

“Nice shirt,” said Victoria as she nudged the gate to the house’s backyard open. “But it would look better on the floor.”

Gavin looked up and grinned as he set down his toolbox.

“I was beginning to wonder if you missed me,” he confessed.

“Of course!” said Victoria. “I’ve been _dying_ to see you.”

Gavin pulled Victoria into a hug and several kisses [describe]. “We need to talk.” Victoria’s face fell. “About the move to Brooklyn, it’s going to be some time before I can put together enough money. Maybe even months.”

“You don’t have to,” Victoria insisted. “I already told you, I’ll sell my jewelry.”

“That’s not what I want,” he said firmly. “I don’t ever want to rely on you the way you’re asking me to, and I don’t want us to keep banging in your parents’ shed like a couple of horny teenagers.”

Victoria was silent for a moment as she tried to block out Mother’s warning.

“Are you breaking up with me, Gavin?”

“I hope not. I love you. I really do. I just don’t think we should keep going like this. There’s nothing wrong with the way we feel about each other. I’m tired of hiding it as if there is.”

Victoria nodded. He had a good point. She’d probably been naïve to think that the secrecy wouldn’t put a strain on their relationship eventually. Especially now. Ted Davis could only be counted on for so much help, and she no longer trusted Justine. When she looked up into the brown eyes she loved so much, even one month felt like an eternity.

“Then I guess we should probably start telling people that we’re seeing each other.”

“You mean it?”

“Yes I mean it. I want to go to the next step with you, Gavin.”

Victoria let Gavin hold her in his arms and kiss her without so much as a glance to see if anyone else was around.

* * *

A few hours later, Victoria gleefully skipped up the front walk. She went straight to the kitchen, where Mother was preparing lunch with Kate Porter’s assistance.

“Good afternoon, Mother,” Victoria sang. “Kate. Lovely eyeshadow you’re wearing today.”

The housekeeper looked surprised. “Thanks.” She glanced at Mother as if to question what had happened to Victoria.

“How was your tennis tournament, Mother?”

“Quite lovely. And if I didn’t know better, I’d say you had a pleasant afternoon yourself.”

“Oh, yes, I did. Thank you.” Victoria cleared her throat when her Mothers’ smile widened. “Do you happen to know the date of the Nichols Gala?”

“November 3rd, darling. Why do you ask?”

“Because I will be attending. With my fiance.” Victoria beamed. “Gavin.”

It took a full ten seconds for Mrs. Montgomery to process what had just hit her. Victoria bit the inside of her lip in an unsuccessful attempt to hold back a smile.

“You’re fired,” said Mother.

“That’s fine. I’m moving soon anyway. Might as well focus on planning my wedding while I’m still in Tree Hill.”

“But what about Ted Davis?”

“He’s a good friend. And a good man. But I’m marrying Gavin. I love him. Nothing you do or say is ever going to change that.”

Mother shook her head. “Are you aware that Ted Davis is legitimately attracted to you? Are you aware that he makes…”

“I don’t care what he makes!” Victoria snapped. “Stop trying to push your standards on me! It’s not going to work!”

“Shut up!” Mother slammed her hand down on the counter. “ _You_ are the disappointment here!”

Victoria blinked back tears. Kate Porter, who had long since ceased food prep, folded her hands and stood quietly as if she wanted to intervene but had no idea how

“Are you gonna kick me out?” Victoria finally asked.

For a moment, Mother seemed to consider it. But she shook her head.

“No. Not now. But if you actually marry that imbecile, you will be _nothing_ to us. You will no longer be welcome to enter my home, speak to my family, or call yourself my daughter.” Mother’s lip began to quiver. “I never thought that I would be able to say I raised such a stupid child.”

Victoria stayed in place, numb, listening as the tap-clunk of Mother’s high heels brought her to the opposite end of the house. Kate Porter opened her mouth as if to speak before quickly following behind her employer.

Why did love have to be so damn hard?

* * *

Victoria powdered her cheeks at her vanity under Kate’s watchful gaze. She felt the housekeeper judging her on Mother’s behalf.

“So Gavin invited you to some sort of…club?” she asked.

“Yes. A lovely place called The Raven's Nest, just outside of town.” Victoria got up and slipped into a pair of six-inch red heels. Jake had said something about having a surprise for her tonight, so she was eager to get going. Then she grabbed her wallet and shoved it into her purse.

“Will he be picking you up here, Victoria?”

“Nope. We’re taking a taxi.” Victoria closed the bedroom door behind her. “If anyone asks where I am, tell them not to wait up.”

“Even your sister?”

“ _Especially_ my sister.”

* * *

When Victoria walked into the Raven’s Nest, she was instantly blinded by bright lights and strangled by the scent of alcohol and sweat. A haze of cigarette smoke sent her into a coughing fit as a woman wearing nothing but leather brushed past her.

Once her coughing subsided, Victoria double checked the name and address that Gavin had given her. Then she double checked it again.

Yes, this was the right Raven’s Nest. Gavin had wanted her to meet him _here._ At this…miserable excuse for a nightclub with more barstools than dining chairs and a stage where four young men were performing a song about…

 _Wait a second._ Victoria recognized one of the faces up on that stage!

_I knew a girl named Nikki  
I guess you could say she was a sex fiend  
I met her in a hotel lobby  
Masturbating with a magazine  
She said how'd you like to waste some time  
And I could not resist when I saw little Nikki grind  
  
_

A young blonde man played the drums, two dark-haired men with full beards played some sort of electric guitars. And there was Gavin, just off to the left, playing a silver keyboard, singing backup vocals, smiling like he was on top of the world.

_She took me to her castle  
And I just couldn't believe my eyes  
She had so many devices  
Everything that money could buy  
She said sign your name on the dotted line  
The lights went out  
And Nikki started to grind  
Nikki…  
  
_

Victoria felt a large, fleshy palm against her shoulder and whipped around to face a burly man adorned with a full-body tattoo of an orange and black snake that was made to look like it had died trying to strangle him.

"You lost, little lady?"

"Um..." Victoria glanced around frantically. "Yes. Where can I find the manager?"

The stranger burst out laughing, and walked away.

Victoria sighed and looked back up to the stage. She tried to wave to Gavin, but it was hopeless. There was no way he’d be able to spot anyone in this crowd. Not even her. He kept on singing.

_Come back Nikki, come back  
Your dirty little wolves  
Wanna grind grind grind grind grind grind grind grind grind  
  
_

A few final notes strummed from the guitar. A cocophony of applause erupted. The lead singer adjusted his microphone.

“All right! We’ve just about got time for one more! Any requests?”

A few people cheered. A few others shouted out the names of songs. When he heard the name of the one he wanted to play, he pointed to the person who had said it and shouted "Bitchin’ choice dude! That’s Gavin's favorite song! Hit it!"

This time, the song they began to play was one that Victoria recognized.

_Uptown girl  
She's been living in her uptown world  
I bet she's never had a backstreet guy  
I bet her momma never told her why_

Victoria felt anger tighten its hold around her and clench her stomach, but she tried to push it away. It was just a song, she reminded herself. Just a song. That someone in the crowd had requested. That Gavin hadn’t picked to sing, though he was singing it...

_I'm gonna try for an uptown girl  
She's been living in her white bread world  
As long as anyone with hot blood can  
And now she's looking for a downtown man  
That's what I am  
  
_

Victoria felt the paper in her hand crumple as she made her way across the room. Gavin’s face was split in a grin as he played and sang his heart out.

Just a song. Just a song.

 _I'm in love with an uptown girl  
_ _You know I've seen her in her uptown world  
_ _She's getting tired of her high class toys  
_ _And all her presents from her uptown boys_

Just a stupid, awful, godforsaken song.

Victoria froze when she felt a greasy hand grab her elbow. As soon as the man who was touching her saw her face, he dropped her arm and grinned.

“Hey,” he said. "I have a thing for brunettes. Want to see it?"

Victoria flinched, shot a glare in his direction, and continued beating herself a path through the smog and strangers. Eventually, she reached a door near the stage and was let inside by a leather-clad brunette with a Joan Jett tattoo. She heard the final note of the song from near the wing of the stage, and from there, the band exited the stage to deafening applause.

Victoria almost screamed when she felt a strong arm wrap itself around her waist, then she realized that it was familiar and relaxed.

“There you are. I was starting to worry.”

“Yeah,” said Victoria, forcing a smile as he planted a kiss on her cheek. “So was I.”

Keeping his arm around her, Gavin led Victoria to the corner of the room and down a small hallway, whereupon they ducked into a small room cluttered with grime and so many people that the adjacent club looked like a spa in comparison. One torn and worn brown couch held three musicians. A tiny blonde on one lap, a tiny redhead on another, a slightly less tiny brunette on another. All sharing beer with their men.

“Here she is, guys,” said Gavin proudly. “Victoria, meet Ellie, Alexa, William, Nudge, Bobby, and Mike.”

Victoria gave an uncertain wave. “Victoria Montgomery. Nice to meet you.” One of the men-Bobby-held out his hand as if for a handshake, then pulled it back at the last second and half-laughed, half-snorted. He then turned to Gavin and nodded approvingly.

“Good job, Gavin! You really _have_ found your very own uptown girl!”

“We were beginning to wonder if he made you up,” said the redhead as she folded one of her legs over the other, exposing more of herself than Victoria had ever cared to see of another woman in the process.

“Well, here I am. In the flesh.”

Gavin sat down on the end of the couch and pulled Victoria into his lap. She sat down and forced a smile as she carefully pulled her skirt into place.

“You’ve been keeping this gem hidden way too long, Gavin,” said the brunette in a thick, slow voice as her gaze traveled down Victoria’s waistline. The blonde, meanwhile, burst out laughing.

“I really love that dress! Want to trade?”

It was a moment before Victoria realized the blonde was talking to _her._

“Um…no thanks.”

“Who’s ready to party?” hollered the drummer-William, was it?-as he retrieved a blunt from his pocket. Everyone started cheering as the brunette reached into her bra and pulled out a lighter, which she promptly used to light up the blunt. After she and William each inhaled deeply, she reached across the couch and over the two women and offered it to Victoria.

“No thanks. I’m driving later.”

“Woohoo!” yelled Mike. Gavin took the blunt and smoked it, exhaling into Victoria’s ear as he passed it along. “Did you hear that, guys?” hollered Mike. “Victoria’s gonna drive us all home tonight!” Before Victoria could even open her mouth to protest, everyone cheered again.

“This one’s a keeper, Gavin!” yelled Bobby. “Next round’s on me!”


	5. Promised You A Miracle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Victoria's parents come face-to-face with Gavin for the first time.

The following evening, Victoria sat at dinner, mindlessly swirling fettucine around on her plate while her family made polite conversation around her.

“So Victoria,” said Mother. “How was your date with Galvin?”

AJ almost choked on his sprite. Justine dropped her fork onto the plate. Mother and Father looked expectantly at their eldest daughter.

“Gavin. And it was wonderful,” said Victoria, about as convincingly as a toddler hiding a cookie behind her back. “Thank you for asking.”

“If it was wonderful, why have you been behaving like a petulant teenager all day long?”

Victoria glared at her plate as she shoveled half a forkful of pasta into her mouth, a move she immediately regretted because she wasn’t hungry at all.

“You’ve had a long day, Victoria,” said Father. “Why don’t you finish eating in your room?”

Surprised but not displeased, Victoria instantly picked up her plate and glass and left. Once Victoria had ascended the staircase and was thus out of earshot, Father turned to Mother.

“I daresay, the fact that she’s getting to know the boy might not be such a bad thing after all. Perhaps she’ll realize on her own that she’s making a mistake.”

“Oh she will, darling,” said Mother. “Just wait until this weekend.”

“You figure something will go wrong when she tries to dress the grease monkey as a prince?”

“I don’t _figure_ , darling. I _know_.”

“I don’t understand what the problem is,” Justine suddenly snapped. “Victoria’s dating a working class guy. So what? Why does it bother you so much?”

“Because if your sister isn’t going to act like a member of our family, she doesn’t have the right to call herself one,” said Mother.

“How can you say that?”

Mother sighed. “You don’t understand, my love.”

“You’re right, I _don’t_ understand.”

“Hold on,” AJ spoke up. “I think we might be missing something here, sis. All you and I know about this guy is that he’s poor, Victoria loves him, and he proposed to her. But considering how much Mom and Dad hate him, there _must_ be something horrible about him that we haven’t been told.” AJ turned to face his parents head-on. “Right? What is it? Is he a murderer? An arsonist? A vegetarian?”

“Enough, Anthony Junior! If Victoria marries Kevin or anyone like him, she will no longer be a part of this family, and if you continue to speak to her after your father and I have disowned her, neither will you. Understood?”

AJ swallowed. “Yes, Mother.”

For a moment, Father almost looked surprised. But he nodded in agreement.

“That goes for you too, Eugenia Justine.”

“Yes, Mother.”

* * *

On the evening of the Nichols Gala, Victoria was waiting on the porch when Gavin came running up the steps with a bouquet of wildflowers in his hand that he’d picked himself.

“They’re beautiful,” said Victoria. “Thank you.” She stepped back in long enough to discreetly wave Kate Porter over and convince her to put the flowers in a vase.

“Do I…uh…” Gavin hesitated. “Do I look okay?”

In other words, did he look good enough to walk into a party full of men who could buy the entirety of his estate with their pocket change?

The tuxedo Gavin had rented wasn’t quite as fancy as Victoria knew most of the other men’s would be, but it wasn’t quite _inappropriate_ either. Victoria herself was wearing a designer dress made out of cream colored satin with short puff sleeves. She’d put on her pearl earrings and necklace.

“You look fine,” Victoria assured Gavin. “You look very handsome.”

Gavin cleared his throat. “Should I greet your parents?”

“They’re not home. They have dinner with one of Father’s coworkers."

“That’s cool. Should we take a cab?”

“The van is fine,” Victoria insisted.

“Very well then, Victoria Montgomery Campbell.” Gavin held out his hand. “Your carriage awaits.” She let him take her hand and begin their night with a sweet kiss.

* * *

Outside the venue where the Gala was taking place, dozens of corvettes and convertibles and limousines surrounded the lonely white van as Gavin pulled into an empty parking spot and shifted the gear.

“You ready for this?” asked Gavin. The look on his face suggested that most alternatives would be preferable.

“Everything will be fine.” Victoria squeezed his hand. Gavin seemed unconvinced, but he still smiled for her benefit as he turned off the truck and opened their doors.

“So, how does a party like this even work? Are there going to be waiters carrying around snacks and drinks and stuff?”

Victoria giggled. “They’re called _servers_. And no. We all sit down and have dinner before the dancing starts.”

“Dancing?”

“We don’t actually have to dance,” Victoria assured Gavin.

“Good,” said Gavin, visibly relieved. “I’m not much of a dancer myself. There’s a reason I didn’t dance with you very much when we were out the other night.”

Victoria wanted to tell him she’d thought the reason they didn’t end up dancing was because he hadn’t been able to walk a straight line by the end of the evening, but she bit her tongue.

As soon as she and Gavin entered the gala venue, Victoria noticed him become tense.

“Don’t worry,” she said. “I’ve got this.” Gavin nodded. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” he whispered. “It’s awfully crowded.”

“Not as crowded as The Raven's Nest,” Victoria pointed out.

“But this place is _huge_.”

Victoria pasted on a smile as one of Mother’s friends walked over.

“Good evening, Mrs. Dixon!” she greeted the other woman sweetly. “How’s your husband?”

“Oh, he’s wonderful!” the other woman chirped. “Just wonderful! Who’s this?”

“Gavin Campbell,” said Victoria. “My fiance.” Gavin nodded politely and shook Mrs. Dixon’s hand.

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Campbell! You’re not from around here, are you?”

Gavin cleared his throat. “No, ma’am. I’m actually from a town a little farther down south.”

“Really? What town is that?”

Gavin hesitated. “Glennville.”

Mrs. Dixon raised her eyebrows but didn’t say anything.

“Give my best to your mother, Miss Montgomery.”

“Take care, Mrs. Dixon.”

As the wealthier woman walked away, Gavin turned to Victoria and gave her an uncertain look. Victoria just beamed.

“Do you want me to tell them something different?” he asked quietly.

“No!” she said. “Please don’t. I insist.”

An endless series of similar exchanges followed. Victoria greeted family friends and acquaintances. They asked about Gavin and commented on how handsome he was. Their smiles faltered when they learned of his class. They moved on.

“I don’t have to remember all their names, do I?” Gavin finally whispered.

“Of course not,” Victoria whispered back. “We’ll probably never see these people again anyway. You just keep being your wonderful self.”

“Good evening, Miss Montgomery.”

Victoria’s face brightened. “Good evening, Ted.” Before she could open her mouth to introduce Gavin, Ted extended his hand.

“It’s nice to finally meet you, Gavin. Victoria’s told me so much about you.”

Gavin shook Ted’s hand and smiled but was clearly surprised. “Ted is a friend,” Victoria explained. “A family friend.”

Ted flashed Victoria a grin and turned to address her. “I don’t suppose the two of you would care to join my mother and I at our table as well?”

“We’d love to,” said Victoria quickly.

“Are you quite sure?” Ted asked.

“Yes.” Victoria insisted, taking Gavin’s arm and following Ted. Why wouldn’t they want to share his table? Ted was the closest thing she had to an ally there.

“Here we are!” Ted proudly announced, gesturing to the table where his mother was sitting at a round table set for six, along with…

No.

_No._

_No!_

Before Victoria even had a chance to react, her Mother had risen to greet her.

“So glad you could make it, darling!” said Mother, leaning over and purposely pulling her daughter into a tight hug that wrenched her from Gavin’s grasp. Victoria felt the rough fabric of Mother’s deep purple gown. The one that she hadn’t worn since Victoria’s high school graduation and had claimed she would never wear again.

“Hello,” said Father, taking Gavin’s hand in his and shaking it weakly. “You must be Gravel.”

“Mother, Father, hi!” squealed Victoria through grit teeth as she stepped back and reclaimed her position at her fiance’s side. _“What in heaven’s name are you two doing here?”_

“It’s perfectly fine, darling,” said Penelope Davis. “Your mother and I decided that our families simply _must_ share a table at the Nichols Gala the very day that we received our invitations! It was anonymous!”

Ted, who was just sitting down next to his mother, nudged her shoulder. _“Unanimous.”_

“I hear the salad they’re serving tonight is quite good, Victoria,” Mother said, sitting down between her husband and her daughter. “The caterer is rumored to use fresh oregano imported all the way from Greece.” Victoria tightened her grip on Gavin’s hand and continued starting at the vase of flowers in the middle of the table as if she found them fascinating. “What are your thoughts on fresh oregano, Melvin?”

* * *

For the most part, Victoria and Gavin managed to survive the first portion of the evening with their heads above water. Most interest in conversation was lost when the food arrived. After dessert, small talk ensued. Gavin smiled politely and sipped his iced tea. Mother, per the norm, dominated the discussion. Father’s stern eyes locked with Gavin’s every few minutes or so, much to the younger man’s discomfort.

“But what about the money?”

Gavin, who had zoned out a few minutes ago, raised his eyebrows at Penelope’s question.

“What do you mean, Mother?” asked Ted. “I’m sure the bride’s family will be covering the expenses. They have the means.”

Gavin opened his mouth to speak. Victoria quickly put her hand on his arm.

“We’re talking about Ted’s cousin in California, who’s getting married next week. They’re releasing live doves at the end of the ceremony.”

Gavin nodded. “That’s cool. But if you wanted to have live birds at our wedding, I’d be a lot more worried about the mess than the expense.” Victoria covered her mouth and giggled. Everyone else just stared.

“What venue did you have in mind for your future wedding, Calvin?” asked Mother. She gave him a look that practically dared him to answer the question. Victoria shot a look that practically dared Mother to continue existing.

“We haven’t yet decided.”

She smiled coolly. “Right. Of course.”

“You know, when Ted gets married, we’ll be having the ceremony at our very own home,” said Penelope. “And the bride won’t have to pay for anything, because we have plenty of money!”

Ted shot Penelope a look. _“Mother.”_

“What? We do.” Penelope glanced at Victoria and lowered her voice as if she were telling a secret. “Did Ted ever tell you what my Robert, may he rest in peace, used to say? He would say that if we were ever to split up and each take half the money, we would _still_ both be millionaires!”

“Okay, everyone!” Ted stood up, clapped his hands together, and then gestured to the corner where a small orchestra was setting up their instruments. “The music is about to start! Anyone care for a dance?”

Father turned to his wife. “Shall we, my dear?” She wordlessly took his hand, and they began making their way to the dance floor. Victoria glanced at Gavin, then smiled at him. He gave her a hint of a smile in return and squeezed her hand.

“Is everything alright?” asked Ted when he saw that they hadn’t gotten up.

“We don’t dance,” said Victoria simply.

“ _You_ do,” Ted pointed out.

“Yeah, Victoria,” said Gavin. “Why don’t you get up and dance for a bit?”

Victoria looked at him in mild surprise. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah,” said Gavin. "I insist." He kissed her cheek. "Go on."

Victoria shrugged, smiled at Ted, and took his hand.

“Did I remember to tell you how stunning you look tonight, Vicki Anne?”

“You have now,” said Victoria. “Thank you. You’re not so bad yourself.”

“Thank you.”

A few seconds after Victoria and Ted stepped out onto the dance floor, a sweet melody filled the room. Ted wrapped one arm around Victoria’s waist and held her left hand in his right, and they both began to sway.

“This is my favorite instrumental piece,” Victoria remarked.

“I know,” said Ted. “You mentioned that it was your favorite when they played it at the Armstrong Charity Ball.”

Victoria’s face lit up. “I did, didn’t I? They hardly ever play it during dances.”

Ted winked. “I may have requested it.”

Victoria looked away and felt herself blush just a tiny bit.

* * *

Gavin sat at the table drumming his fingers on the smooth tablecloth as he watched Victoria dance with Ted. She was smiling. She was happy. She was having fun. Gavin had stopped having fun as soon as he got out of his truck in the parking lot.

This was Victoria’s world. It would never be his.

“Darling, could you please fetch me a glass of champagne? I’m feeling tired.”

Gavin didn’t take his eyes off Victoria even when he realized that her mother was sitting back down at the table. Her husband tucked in her chair for her and then he squeezed her shoulder and walked away, leaving Gavin and Mrs. Montgomery alone. The woman folded her hands in her lap, leaned back, and sighed.

“Victoria is an amazing woman.”

Gavin cleared his throat and awkwardly re-positioned himself to face the older woman.

“Yes,” he agreed “She is.”

The song stopped playing, and Victoria and Ted froze in place for a moment, still caught in the other’s embrace. A new song began playing immediately, and they both cheerfully resumed dancing.

“So beautiful. So intelligent. So sophisticated.”

Gavin watched Victoria’s skirt twirl as she moved, her feet in tune with the music as if they were one.

“Do you know what the word sophisticated means?”

“Yes, yes I do.” Then he added. “I’m a very lucky man.”

Mother turned to him with a cold, blank stare. “You’re a thief.”

“Excuse me?”

"Do you know where the alcohol being served at this party comes from?"

"Can't say that I do, ma'am."

"Inglenook Chateau. It’s French.”

Gavin nodded to show he was paying attention, but quickly glanced away to check on Ted and Victoria on the dance floor. They were gliding and turning in perfect synch, with the music and with each other.

"How much do you think that one bottle of this champagne costs, Gavin Campbell? Take a guess."

Gavin turned back to Mother and shrugged. "Two hundred dollars?"

"Two _thousand_.” Mother paused. “Could you afford to spend two grand on a bottle of champagne?" Gavin didn't respond. "That's what I thought.”

The back of Victoria’s heel caught on her own dress for a split second. Ted caught her in his arms and gently pulled her to her feet. Both of their faces lit up as they laughed.

“What if you became terribly ill and the only treatment that could save you cost two thousand dollars?” asked Mother. “Would you be able to come up with it then?" Gavin didn’t respond. Mother lowered her voice and leaned across the table so that her face was about two feet away from Gavin's. "Your _life_ is worth less than a single bottle of the beverage being served at tonight's gala. What makes you think that you could _ever_ deserve to be with the likes of my daughter? That's what makes you a thief. Taking someone that's not yours to have. You are _not_ worthy of Victoria. You will never be worthy of anyone or anything in this room."

Gavin just starred at her, his expression betraying no emotion. A few seconds later, Father returned with the beverage his wife had requested. She took one sip of her champagne and then set it down and walked over to the dance floor. As soon as she was out of sight, Gavin stood up, shook his head, and gently swatted the champagne glass, not cracking it but letting the contents pour out and soak through the tablecloth.

"Gavin?"

He turned around and saw Victoria, Ted having followed a few yards behind, both with perplexed expressions on their faces.

"What's wrong?" asked Victoria.

"Go play with your friend," said Gavin curtly. "I'm leaving."

* * *

"Gavin? Gavin, wait!"

Gavin finally turned around when Victoria caught up to him and grabbed his arm.

"The gala isn't over," said Victoria. "There's only another hour of dancing left, and then-"

“How could you do this to me?” Gavin interrupted.

“What are you talking about? I already told you, Ted is just a friend.”

“This isn’t about the fact that you danced with some _guy_ ,” said Gavin. “It’s the way these people look at me. I have never felt as…as _cheap_ and worthless in my life as I have this evening.”

Victoria shook her head. “Gavin…” she pressed both of her hands to his cheeks. “It’s okay. Their opinions are worth nothing. Not to me, and not to us. I promise. All I care about is you.”

Gavin didn’t pull away from her touch, but he didn’t return the gesture, either. He blankly starred down at her.

“Is that why you brought me here?” he finally asked. “To trot me out in front of these people to show them you don’t give a damn?” Victoria opened her mouth to protest. “If you really didn’t care what these people thought about us, we’d be at my apartment having dinner and making wedding plans right now.”

"Gavin, I..."

Gavin stepped back. “Call me when you figure out what you really want.”

And he disappeared into the crowd.


	6. See The Lights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Victoria finds herself at another crossroads with Gavin.

The following morning, Victoria walked out of her room wearing leggings and a large grey cardigan, indifferent to the bags under her eyes and her hair sticking to unwashed makeup on her cheeks and neck. She quietly descended the stairs hoping to avoid her parents, but all she found was a note was a note beside the chocolate dish. Mother was out shopping, Father had taken the other car to the golf course, and they hoped she slept well and that she and Corvin enjoyed the gala.

“Kate!” called Victoria.

The housekeeper emerged from the storage closet. “What can I do for you?”

“I need a taxi.”

Kate Porter looked Victoria up and down, round eyes questioning her disheveled appearance. Nevertheless, Kate picked up the phone and called for a cab.

Victoria sat down by the kitchen counter. She pulled a caramel chocolate out of the dish, unwrapped it, and popped it in her mouth. It was heavy and unexpectedly sour on her tongue, but she chewed it anyway.

Moments later, AJ and Justine came running downstairs. They paused in the kitchen doorway when they saw Victoria. Victoria looked at the two sets of grey eyes, wide with concern.

“V, what happened to you?” Justine asked. And for the first time in a month, Victoria answered.

“My life sucks."

AJ grimaced sympathetically and gave Victoria a brief hug before going out to meet his friends at the bus stop. Justine stopped and leaned against the door as Victoria wiped a tear away with her thick sleeve.

"Did Gavin break up with you?"

"No. But I think part of him might want to."

"Is that what you want?"

Victoria shook her head and shrugged at the same time.

"If marrying Gavin and leaving with him will make you happy, then you should do it," said Justine. "I mean it. But please, for your sake, just think about everything that you’ll be giving up for him. And everything you’re asking him to give up for you.”

Victoria closed her eyes but didn't flinch when Justine hugged her and rested her head against Victoria's shoulder for just a moment. After the younger girl left for school, Victoria’s cab pulled up to the house and honked.

* * *

Gavin opened the door to his apartment before Victoria even had a chance to knock.

“Hi,” she whispered. He let her step into his apartment. The light was dim, but she could see the dark circles under his eyes clear as day.

“Gavin, I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry too.”

“I shouldn’t have put you through that. I was just…I don’t know. I shouldn’t have done that.”

Gavin shook his head. “Forget what I said about them, Victoria. This should be about me and you. And the truth is that we’re different. You’re probably imagining that when we move to Brooklyn everything will change. But the fact is, I _like_ playing music in crappy clubs and hanging out with guys who drink cheep beer and smoke pot. And last night, I watched you come to life in that ballroom. You were happy around those people, and that music, and that world. And when you do become a famous fashion designer, that’s the world you’re going to want.”

Gavin’s face fell, as if he was just realizing the words he was saying. As if he already knew he had lost her.

Victoria knew that there were any number of things she could say that would have set them on the path to becoming whole again. She could have told him that she wanted him more than she wanted her dream now…that he _was_ her dream. She could have promised him that it was all going to work out, that they could learn to live in each other’s worlds, that everything would be okay.

But how much of that would have been true? And would any of this really be fair in the long run? To either of them?

“I love you, Gavin,” Victoria whispered, the last syllable catching in her throat.

“I love you, Victoria Montgomery…” he stopped, then bent down and kissed Victoria’s cheeks and lips as she blinked back tears.

“You’ll always be a Campbell to me,” he said softly.

Victoria closed her eyes for fear that if she kept looking at Gavin she wouldn’t be able to bring herself to walk away, that they would end up back in each other’s arms. What good would one last bittersweet moment do either of them when there was only one way it was going to end?

“And you’ll always be my first love,” she said.

“I hope you find your dream,” were his last words before she heard his front door open and then close. He was gone.

Ten minutes later, Victoria found herself walking down the sidewalk, her cheeks soaked. She flinched when she heard a car horn honking a few feet behind her. When she heard it again, she looked over her shoulder. The driver pulled his car to a stop next to the curb. It was Ted.

“What happened?” he inquired gently.

Victoria wiped a tear from her cheek and shook her head. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Do you need a ride?”

Wordlessly, Victoria nodded, walked over to his car, and got in.


	7. All Tomorrow's Parties

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Six months have gone by, and Victoria takes a huge step in her life.

Long branches christened with baby pink cherry blossoms bobbed in the light breeze, completing the perfect atmosphere for a late spring wedding. Workers unfolded elegant white chairs, making two neat rectangular patterns across the lawn on either side of a long strip of dark purple velvet. Clusters of white flowers had popped up all over the lawn, in such perfect, wayward form that they almost fooled some into thinking they had happened naturally. But alas, they had been deliberately planted by gardeners who had taken care to give them just enough fertilizer, not too little and not too much.

Inside the mansion, Father and AJ were overseeing the placement of the guest book and the gift table, while out back, Penelope Davis was overseeing the placement of the buffet. In the most sizable bathroom near the back of the mansion, Kate Porter was fastening the zipper of Victoria’s white gown.

“Victoria, you look absolutely stunning,” Mother declared with a smile. “This dress is nearly as becoming on you as it once was on me.”

“Thanks, mother?”

“You’re welcome, dear,” Mother glanced in the mirror long enough to fix the last strand of her hair. Then, satisfied, she turned to her housekeeper. “Kate, please come help me find the makeup artist before Penelope gets ahold of him. He is to prepare Victoria according to my instructions and mine alone.”

Mother and Kate disappeared, leaving the two sisters alone in the room. Victoria stood at the mirror admiring her reflection.

“Well, this is it,” said Justine, coming up to Victoria’s side in her own lavender bridesmaid's dress. “Any second thoughts?”

Victoria shook her head. “No. Not at all.”

Justine delicately placed her arms around Victoria’s slender shoulders and back.

“Do you love him?”

“I love who he is as a person. And that’s enough.”

Ted knew everything there was to know about Gavin. He knew that Victoria still thought of him every day, often with tears. But alas, they were where they were. Both single, both surrounded by family and friends with great expectations. When Victoria was with Ted, she was comfortable and relaxed and happy. They understood each other’s wants and needs. She had promised to support him in his career in all the ways that a wife should, and he had promised to put her through her fashion design school of choice.

“Besides,” said Victoria. “Ted has relatives coming all the way from Freemont. I _have_ to get married.”

Justine half-smiled. “Do you have something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue?”

“Yes,” said Victoria. “My shoes are new, my eyeliner will be blue, and I borrowed Mother’s old dress.”

“You can’t count the dress as both old and borrowed! That’s cheating!”

“Says who?”

“Here,” said Justine, opening Victoria’s jewelry box, which they’d brought along. Justine retrieved the platinum heart earrings. “Wear these. These are old.”

Victoria took them and held one of them up to her ear. Why not? It looked nice with her dress. She put them in, just in time for Mother to re-enter with the makeup artist.

* * *

Victoria took a deep breath as she viewed her reflection in the mirror as Miss Montgomery for the last time. Every lock of her hair, every stitch of her veil, every eyelash, had been made perfect.

When Victoria rounded the corner on her father’s arm and all rose to get a better look at her in her gown, she imagined she felt the way that a model might walking down the runway in a brand new designer outfit, surrounded by a sea of strangers. Adored. Treasured. Beautiful. Even though less than a quarter of the faces watching Victoria step down the aisle in her heels were ones she recognized, and fewer still were those of people she’d invited herself, she couldn’t help but feel like a princess. She forced herself to look away from the disgustingly proud visages her mother and future mother-in-law were sporting. The joke was on them. Victoria wasn’t marrying Ted to make anyone but herself happy.

At the end of the aisle, Ted was waiting to take Victoria from her father. He looked breathtakingly handsome in his new tux. His hair had been combed in such a way that it still fell over one eye as he kissed her hand and she stepped up to the altar.

“We are gathered here today to unite Robert Theodore Davis Junior and Victoria Anne Montgomery in holy matrimony,” said the elderly priest at the altar. “This wedding symbolizes not only the joining between two young people who love each other with all their hearts, but the joining of two families who have been in each other’s lives for a great many years.” Victoria looked down at her bouquet and forced her grit teeth into a smile. “The mother of the bride has known the groom for over five years, since just after he graduated from university. And she knew from the day that she met Ted Davis that he would be a perfect addition to her family. Mrs. Montgomery says that the day she met her future son-in-law was one of the most significant days of her life, and even that day paled in comparison to the day that Victoria and Ted finally decided to become engaged…”

Victoria continued to forced herself to keep smiling as the priest went on, even though her face was beginning to physically ache.

“Do you, Robert Theodore Davis Junior,” Victoria sighed with relief, “Take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife, to love, honor, and cherish, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?”

Ted flashed Victoria a smile, which she returned. “I do.”

“Do you, Victoria Anne Montgomery, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband, to love, honor, and cherish, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?”

“I do,” said Victoria.

“By the power vested in me by the state of North Carolina, I now pronounce you Man and Wife. Mr. Davis, you may kiss your bride.”

The band began playing as Ted pulled Victoria into a long and nice kiss in front of their friends and family.

“Presenting to you for the first time, ladies and gentleman, Mr. and Mrs. Robert Theodore Davis jr.!”

* * *

After a brief photoshoot, Victoria and Ted strategically brought everyone inside to cut the cake long enough for the workers to quickly set up some dining tables in the garden and rearrange the chairs. Victoria and Ted ate at Ted’s family’s table, which was occupied by his mother, aunts, uncles, and cousins. All were full of congratulations and well wishes. When a couple of Ted’s relatives had to leave and the spot next to Victoria was vacated, Justine came over to see her.

“Where’s Ted?” the younger girl asked.

“Saying goodbye to his cousin Ken.” Victoria pulled out the chair beside her slightly so that Justine would sit down.

“Are you having a good time?”

“Yes, actually,” Victoria replied, lowering her voice. “Aside from the fact that everyone in the Davis family thinks it’s somehow acceptable and not at all tactless to gossip about me right in front of me. They’re all wondering how many _kids_ we’re going to have.” The look on her face suggested that she’d just been handed a dirty diaper.

“That’s so rude.”

“Eh, whatever. Let them talk. I already know that I don’t want any children. Never have, never will.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. I’m sure.” Victoria came to the sudden realization that she had never had this conversation with anyone other than Gavin before. He had been fine with it and told her that he was leaning towards not wanting children anyway but would have just one or two with her if she ever changed her mind. Victoria and Ted had never explicitly discussed the matter, but between his devotion to his job and her extensive fashion school plans, surely the handwriting was on the wall that it was never going to happen.

“I’m glad that the wedding will be over before your graduation, Jussie,” said Victoria. “I can’t wait to see you get your diploma.”

“Me too. I can’t believe that while you’re on your honeymoon, I’ll be doing my mission in Africa.”

Victoria squeezed her sister’s shoulder. “I’m so proud of you.”

“I’m proud of you, too. Now, maybe you’ll finally have your dream.”

Victoria and Justine turned around when they heard the sound of a spoon clinking against an empty glass being held by their father. Penelope Davis and both of Victoria’s parents were standing nearby together. Victoria stood up to hear their announcement, and Ted rushed over to stand by her.

“First of all,” said Father once the crowd had quieted, “I would like to congratulate my beautiful daughter Victoria and her brilliant new husband, Ted Davis.”

Everyone clapped. Victoria and Ted smiled and waved.

“As you all know,” Mother cut in, “This marriage is one that my husband and I-and my new sister-in-law-are enormously pleased with, because in a way, it is not just our children who were married today, but our families.” A chorus of ‘awws’ from the crowd followed that made Victoria want to slap something. “And to celebrate this, we decided to give our children a very special wedding present to follow this very special occasion.”

Father stepped forward, “And all we have left to say to Ted and Victoria is that we hope that neither of them has any important plans for the next three weeks, because our gift to you is an extended honeymoon in Venice!”

Ted and Victoria glanced at each other in elated shock, then looked back to their parents, their annoyance at the way the ceremony had gone momentarily forgotten. Victoria held out her arms to embrace Mother and Father, who came over and hugged her and shook Ted’s hand.

Mother raised her glass. “To Ted and Victoria!”

Everyone toasted the newlyweds and drunk up.

* * *

In the meantime, the wedding altar had been replaced with a dance floor and a small orchestra. Most of the remaining guests stayed at their tables while Victoria and Ted stepped out onto the dance floor. He took her right hand in his left and wrapped his arm around her waist while she held her skirt in her left hand Cinderella-style. They looked into each other’s eyes and smiled. This was only the beginning. Everything else would work out soon enough. It had to.

_My love  
There's only you in my life  
The only thing that's bright  
  
My first love  
You're every breath that I take  
You're every step I make_

_And I  
I want to share  
All my love with you  
No one else will do_

Ted and Victoria twirled around in haphazard patterns around the dance floor, keeping in mind that everyone they knew was watching them while also trying to enjoy themselves. Victoria had chosen the song herself. The lyrics didn’t describe her relationship with Ted right now, but maybe they would someday.

 _And your eyes  
Your eyes, your eyes  
They tell me how much you care  
Ooh yes, you will always be  
My endless love_

All of the guests sat still and quiet, respectfully appreciating the beauty of the newlyweds’ first dance.

Towards the back of the crowd, a seventeen-year-old girl sighed wistfully and rested her hand on her chin, ignoring the bickering waiters she could hear behind her and her little brother’s incessant pinching of her calves under the table.

 _Two hearts  
Two hearts that beat as one  
Our lives have just begun  
  
Forever  
I'll hold you close in my arms  
I can't resist your charms_

“I hope that one day somebody loves me as much as they love each other,” the girl said softly to herself.

“I’m sure they will, Deb,” said the girl’s mother. “Now get your elbow off the table.”

Deb sighed, sat back in her seat, and absentmindedly twirled one of her blonde locks around her finger.

_'Cause you,  
You mean the world to me  
Oh  
I know  
I know  
I've found in you  
My endless love_

* * *

A few more dances and a few more drinks later, Mother informed Victoria that the airport shuttle would be there for her and Ted in twenty minutes.

“But we haven’t even packed!” Victoria protested.

“Penelope and I packed for you,” said Mother. “Go on.”

Normally, Victoria would have been thrilled to be sent to Europe for three weeks, but the lack of control she had over her life was becoming irritating.

“Victoria?” Ted placed a concerned hand on her arm. “Are you feeling alright?”

“I’m fine,” said Victoria. “Just fine. Let’s get ready to leave.”

Ted kissed her cheek. “Don’t worry if our parents missed anything. There are stores in Paris, too.” Victoria smiled.

Twenty minutes later, Victoria and Ted waved goodbye to their wedding guests as the limo’s chauffer opened the door to let them in. Ted got in first. Victoria paused to turn around and toss her bouquet into the crowd. She waved to the blonde teenager whose arms it landed in before sliding into the backseat with her husband and letting the door close behind them. She and Ted turned and grinned at each other as the limo drove off, leaving all their problems behind.

“So,” said Ted. “I guess we’re going to be spending our wedding night on an airplane.”

“Yeah,” said Victoria, slipping her feet out of her shoes and nudging them underneath her seat. “I wonder…” she cupped her husband’s cheek in her right hand and kissed him full on the lips “…what we’re going to do about that.”

Ted beamed. “I like the way you think, Mrs. Davis.” He kissed her again before reaching to pull down the privacy screen between the backseat and the driver’s seat.

* * *

Victoria let her terrycloth robe drop to her feet and carefully stepped into her warm bathtub, pausing to turn on the Jacuzzi jets before sitting down and relaxing. She took a sip from the glass of wine she’d set next to the tub for herself and reached for the latest issue of _Vogue._

The few days of her life had been glorious. Almost enough to make her forget about what was waiting for her back home.

“Ted!” called Victoria. “Can you bring me the shampoo bottle from my nightstand?”

She heard Ted’s footsteps bring him around the room and then to her door. He opened it and handed her the object she’d requested.

“You got your hair cut,” she realized out loud. Her new husband was now sporting a very short buzz, almost down to his scalp.

“I did,” said Ted. “I got it done at the little barber shop down the street next to the restaurant you liked. Do you want to go back there for dinner?”

“Yes, please,” said Victoria. “Tomorrow can we go back to the museum we went to yesterday? I’d like to spend some more time in the east wing.”

“Of course.” Ted leaned to kiss Victoria on the cheek. “Oh, and before I forget, my mother called a few minutes ago. She says hello.” Victoria smiled and began running her fingers through her wet hair. “And she wanted me to let you know that your parents sent over the last of your things from the house.”

“Wait, what?”

Ted held up his hands in surrender. “I didn’t put in a request to have them moved. I assumed you did.”

“Of course not,” said Victoria. “We’re _not_ going to be living with your mother, Ted. We’re not going to be living _anywhere_ in North Carolina.”

“You haven’t even applied to Ladeaux yet,” Ted reminded Victoria. “What if you don’t get in, and end up deciding to go to fashion school in California or Idaho instead of Brooklyn? We need somewhere to live, at least temporarily, and my mother’s house is as good a place as any. Don’t worry. It’s rather sizable. You’ll hardly notice she’s around.”

“Promise?”

Ted flashed a smile. “Promise.” And then he walked out the door. Victoria leaned back against the tub’s sloped edge and opened her magazine. She relaxed and allowed herself to fantasize about the day she’d see her first line of clothing in the window of Macy’s.


	8. Let It All Come Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A shocking discovery leads to a fight between Ted and Victoria.

A few days after she returned from her honeymoon, Victoria crossed the threshold of her no-longer-home a visitor with gift bags in hand. Justine had already left for Africa, but her parents and AJ were around. She went upstairs to check for something in her former room only to find that it had been stripped completely bare of her. Even her bed was gone.

“Has anyone seen my black sweater?” Victoria asked, after making sure it hadn’t ended up with Justine’s belongings. “I couldn’t find it in any of my boxes.”

“Don’t worry,” said Mother. “I threw that out.”

“You threw my sweater away?”

“Stop being so dramatic. I just got rid of all the clothes you won’t need anymore.”

“What about my red blouse?”

“I kept that one for myself. It was never your color anyway.”

Victoria grit her teeth and went downstairs to give everyone their gifts, grateful that she no longer lived with her parents and Mother would no longer be able to do such things.

The living room turned out to be the one place in the house that still acknowledged Victoria’s existence. Photographs of Ted and Victoria’s wedding were prominently displayed on the family photo wall, displacing christenings and graduations and school pictures from years past. The largest one was of just the bride and groom with their mothers, Penelope at Ted’s side, Mother at Victoria’s.

Victoria handed out her abundance of presents; a case of Italian wine for Father, bags of dry pasta for Mother, and a leather jacket for AJ. She’d gotten bright gold Versace dresses for Mother and Justine, and one for Kate Porter, too, in teal.

When asked about her plans for the coming weeks, Victoria only talked about settling in with Ted and spending more time with him. She wasn’t about to so much as allude to her fashion school plans. If Mother managed to find out that she was set to apply to Ladeaux, she would someway, somehow, find a way to stop it. And that wasn’t going to happen. Not again.

* * *

For the most part, Victoria’s life had become a blissful fantasy world. She spent mornings at the shopping mall, afternoons at the library, and evenings with her husband.

Unfortunately, the latter also meant listening to the opinions of her mother-in-law.

“I had no idea that you were marrying a reader, Teddy,” Penelope scolded. “This woman is going to ruin her eyes at that stupid library. Why can’t she take up a more useful hobby, like flower arranging?”

“Or fashion design?” Victoria suggested.

Penelope scoffed. “Heavens, no. We leave that to the men.”

Ted and Victoria exchanged an amused glance. Victoria’s only reason for going to the library was to research fashion schools and fill out applications undetected. Most of the fall deadlines had long passed, but as Victoria reminded herself, spring wasn’t that far away.

“I know!” said Penelope. “What musical instrument do you play?”

“I haven’t played a musical instrument.”

“Your mother didn’t teach you anything?”

“She taught me to bake.”

“Tsk. Poor sweet Barbara. It’s not her fault she grew up in a suburb. Victoria, in my house, you do not _ever_ do your own cooking or baking. We have people for that. Understood?”

“Yes, Penelope.”

“No. Call me Mother.”

“Yes, Mother.”

* * *

One evening, Ted came home from work late to find Victoria sitting on her bed with fashion magazines and pencils spread out all around her.

“Doing anything important, darling?”

“Just honing my craft,” Victoria cheerfully set down her sketchpad on the bedside table. “How was your day?”

“Fascinating, I convinced a few thousand people to buy a new brand of detergent,” Ted half joked as he put his jacket away. “I did have lunch with Mr. Lockwood. That was enjoyable. He and his wife invited us over for dinner tomorrow night. You don’t mind, do you?”

“Hmmm. Will his cousin Terrance be there?”

“If he is, I shall see to it that he’s on his best behavior,” Ted promised.

“Then of course I don’t mind.”

Ted turned around, swept all the magazines off the bed, and pounced on Victoria. She giggled as he tried to kiss her while also undoing her messy bun. Then he pulled away for a moment and swept her long dark tresses around her face.

“You’re beautiful, Vicky.”

“You’re handsome,” she whispered back. “And strong, and brilliant, and…” His lips were back on hers before she had a chance to finish.

Loving Ted was nothing like loving Gavin. With Gavin, there had been raw, feral passion. She and Ted simply enjoyed each other. He was attentive to her, by night and by day. They had a lot to talk about, and they listened to each other and valued what the other had to offer. It was nice and comfortable. It was easy.

When Victoria woke up the next morning and saw her magazines stacked neatly beside the bed, she realized that she was beginning to fall in love with her husband.

* * *

Soon enough, Victoria put her last stamp on her last application. Now, all there was to do was wait.

“So, I’ve noticed you’ve given up books,” Penelope remarked a few dinners later. “Thank the lord. Now that you have some free time on your hands, you simply must come and join me at the club tomorrow afternoon. I won’t take no for an answer!”

Ted looked at Victoria as if to say, “You don’t mind, do you?” She smiled at him. Of course she didn’t enjoy the idea of spending even more time with her mother-in-law, but she would do it for Ted.

“Very well,” said Victoria. “I’ll come join you.”

Penelope beamed, then gave Victoria a once-over. “Make sure you wear something new. And don’t forget to do your hair tomorrow.”

The following day, Victoria arrived at the country club and found Penelope sitting in the dining room with several other wealthy middle-aged women. To Victoria’s surprise, Mother was also there.

“There she is!” Penelope waved. “Come join us, Victoria!”

Victoria sat down in an empty seat beside Mother, who introduced her to the rest of the group as her daughter, Victoria Montgomery Davis.

“So, Victoria, Mrs. Lockwood here is hosting Tree Hill’s next charity ball, and she’s trying to decide what cause to raise money for this year.”

“What about global warming?” Victoria suggested.

Penelope snickered. “Why? Any day now, one of those idiots will figure out that they can just put a tarp over the hole in the ozone layer and everything will be fine.”

“I’m…not sure that’s how it works.”

Mother put a hand on Victoria’s arm. “Hush now. What do _you_ know about science?”

“Originally I was thinking of raising money for the Salvation Army,” Mrs. Lockwood explained. “But I’d hate to see people’s well-meant donations go to helping a bunch of homeless drug addicts.”

“Very good point,” Penelope added. “And all those Mexicans, too.”

“How about the New Brunswick center for the performing arts?” Mother suggested. “I heard a rumor that they were looking at renovating the Tamblyn-Freyer wing. I’m sure they could use the support.”

Mrs. Lockwood lit up. “That’s a wonderful idea, Mrs. Montgomery!”

Soon enough, Mother was the center of a lively discussion of how the money would be spent once it was donated, and how they could raise more money and convince more people to attend the ball. It was as though she had always been a part of this world, and these same women hadn’t been mocking her for years.

Mother wasn’t just the wife of a modestly successful businessman anymore. She was the mother of a Davis. That meant she was one of them now.

Victoria eventually rattled off an excuse about meeting a friend before dinner and walked away. She went home, wrote an angry letter about Mother to Justine in Africa, and then tore it up. She didn’t need to bother her sister half a world away. This was all temporary anyhow. Mother could have the social circles of Tree Hill. Victoria would have Brooklyn. By this time next spring, she would be devoting herself to her passion with Ted by her side.

* * *

Victoria refused to go back to the country club for lunch after that, instead arriving later in the afternoon when she knew that her mother would be back home preparing dinner with Kate. She took to eating lunch at the Over Easy Diner. Justine’s friend Karen was waitressing there for the summer, and she had memorized Victoria’s usual order of a caesar salad and half a grilled cheese sandwich. One time, Victoria decided to treat herself to a cheeseburger instead, a move that she regretted for the rest of the day. She felt so nauseous that she left the club early and went straight to bed.

The following day, she went back to the Over Easy Diner and told the manager what had happened. The manager told Karen to “Bring Mrs. Davis her usual for free.”

Forty-five minutes later, Victoria found herself on her knees in her bathroom at home clumsily holding her own hair out of the way with one hand while she worshiped the porcelain god and mentally cursed the manager of the Over Easy Diner. When she was done, she dropped her hair, flushed the toilet, and scooted back across the floor. She opened the door to the cabinet under the sink to see if there was a bottle of Pepto. There wasn’t any medication in there at all, just hair products, toothbrushes, and a flower basket full of neatly-arranged supplies that according to Victoria’s calculations she shouldn’t need to use until about…

…eight days ago.

Wait. That couldn’t be right.

Frantically, Victoria redid her math backwards and forwards and then backwards again. It all added up to only one thing.

“Oh, shit.”

Victoria took a few sips of water from a paper cup by the sink, staggered to the bedroom, and found the Tree Hill phone book in one of the drawers of Ted’s nightstand. She located one of her own fountain pens and began leafing through the pages, circling the phone numbers of places that would give her the help she needed as she went. _Supporting Choices. Planned Parenthood. Women Now._

Victoria almost fell off the edge of the bed when the door to the bedroom opened, and a concerned look crossed her husband’s face.

“Are you all right, Vicky? Do you need anything?”

Victoria’s mouth dropped open halfway. There were a million things she could have pretended to be looking for in the phone book. But coming up with an excuse to pull hundreds of dollars out of their joint account to pay for the operation would be trickier.

“I’m looking to schedule the procedure,” she finally said.

“What procedure?” Ted asked. After a few seconds his eyes widened, “A breast enhancement?”

“No!” said Victoria. “I’m pregnant, okay?”

Out of all the reactions that Victoria Davis could have predicted her husband would have to that news, none of them included him scooping her up into his arms in the honeymoon pose. Or kissing her longer and harder than he ever had. Or pulling back from her with a euphoric grin on his face, only for his blood to run cold when he glanced down at the phone book and saw one of the numbers she had circled.

“Wait…were you just about to…you mean you want…”

“Ted, we _can’t_ have a baby!” said Victoria, still recovering from the shock of his joy. “We’re about to be moving, I’m about to start school, you’re going to need to get a new job. It wouldn’t make any sense.”

“But what if something goes wrong? You could ruin your chances of ever becoming pregnant.”

“I don’t _want_ to have children, Ted,” Victoria finally admitted. “Ever.” Ted sat down at the edge of the bed, putting a distance of about six feet between himself and his wife and looking away with an unreadable expression. “But _you_ do,” she realized.

A painful moment of silence passed between them, the tension hanging thick in the air.

“Ted, I’m sorry. We definitely should have talked about this before we got married. But I feel _very_ strongly about it. I don’t think this is a compromise I’m going to be able to make.”

“Why not?” Ted snapped coldly. “Wasn’t I making a compromise when I chose to marry you…to pledge to love you for the rest of my life in front of everyone who matters to me…even though I knew that you were still in love with someone else?”

“Ted! That’s not fair! You knew that going in.”

“That doesn’t mean it was easy,” Ted snapped.

“Then why did you do it?”

“Because I care about you, Vicky. And because I thought that we could be good together. But my whole life, I’ve dreamed of having a wife and sons. I might be content with just one son. But if you choose to destroy the life we’ve already created…then I’m not sure I’ll be able to see myself with you anymore.”

Victoria pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. Ted looked at her expectantly. After a moment, he excused himself to have dinner with his mother.

Victoria laid her head between her knees, tears soaking the fabric of her skirt as she heard the click of her door closing shut.

* * *

When Ted came back upstairs that night, he found Victoria sitting on their bed under the lamp with a book propped up on her knees. When he sat down next to her, she looked up at him and folded the book over on her right hand so that he could see she was reading _What To Expect When You’re Expecting_ , a book she had conveniently received as a wedding gift. She got a kiss on the cheek in return.

“Fashion school has waited years,” Victoria reasoned. “It can wait until next fall.”

Ted smiled contentedly and placed a hand on her still-flat belly.

“Do let me know when you make an appointment with an obstetrician,” Ted pleaded. "I’d like know everything that happens with Robert Theodore Davis the III.”

“You named it already?”

“Of course,” said Ted. “I’m the one who wanted him.”

Victoria decided to ignore the remark. “Let’s get some sleep.”

If Victoria had known upfront that pregnancy and childbirth would be the price to pay for Ted and fashion school, there was no way she would have said yes. But it was happening, and all she could do was make the most of it and hope that by chance Ted enjoyed spending time with his mini-me so much that neither of them would mind the long hours Victoria would be studying.


	9. The Kick Inside Of Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Victoria's family continues to exhaust her.

Victoria shuddered as cold, sticky gel spread across her abdomen. Ted leaned forward and squeezed her hand in anticipation. The excitement in his eyes was equal parts irritating and endearing. So far, he was enjoying this pregnancy _much_ more than Victoria had. Constant nausea, constant bathroom breaks, unprecedented levels of fatigue.

The day after they learned she was pregnant, Ted had presented Victoria with her own personal maid, whose only job was to clean up after her and bring her anything she wanted at all times. “You’re not to lift a finger, Vicky.” That part, she could get used to. But feeling ill made her miserable anyway.

“How much of him will we be able to see?” Ted asked the ultrasound tech.

“Basically just the head, torso, and legs. He’s not very big right now. About the size of a grape.”

Seriously? A person the size of a grape was already ruining Victoria’s life? Her body couldn’t have held up until it was at least cantaloupe stage?

Ted beamed as he turned to the still-blank screen in anticipation. He gasped a little when a faint white silhouette of a developing baby appeared.

“Why is it moving around?” asked Victoria.

“He’s squirming,” said the doctor. “All the poking and prodding we’re doing is confusing the little guy.”

Victoria could have sworn she saw a tear slide down her husband’s cheek.

“Is it healthy?” she asked.

“He looks just fine,” said the doctor. “Strong heartbeat, normal development. We’re seeing everything we should be seeing.”

Ted bent down to give Victoria a kiss on the forehead.

“I want you to know how much I appreciate this, Vicky,” he said softly.

She didn’t respond. Appreciative or not, he was still blackmailing her.

“Let’s tell our families!” he suddenly declared. “We can take everyone out to dinner to celebrate.”

“No,” Victoria almost snapped. “It’s much too early. Let’s wait until I’m three months along. By then Jussie will be back from Africa. And imagine how heartbroken everyone would be if we told them now, and then…something happened.”

Ted reluctantly agreed. But much to Victoria’s disappointment, Justine’s next letter home announced that she was extending her mission until December. Which meant that when Victoria announced her pregnancy, there wouldn’t be a single person in the room who understood how she felt-and didn't feel-about it.

* * *

“Check this out, Vicky,” Ted whispered as slipped into bed next to Victoria.

“Thanks, but I’ve already seen it,” Victoria dryly responded without looking up from her fashion magazine.

Ted chuckled. “Look.” He handed Victoria a piece of paper to which he’d taped various colors and patterns from an interior design catalogue as well as a floor plan. Ash flooring, white walls with black wainscoting, black edging. A sleek, stylish black and gold desk and chair set. Matching bookcase. Floor lamp. Leather recliner. Patterned white and gold area rug. Various art pieces related to sports and nature.

“This looks very elegant. Are you redoing your home office?”

“Nope! It’s the baby’s room.”

“It looks like an office. He’ll need somewhere to sleep.”

Ted sighed. “Of course. You’re right. He’ll need a crib. And a toy chest.” He added those things to the floor plan. “I should pick out some toys for him. Maybe some of those plastic action figures. Child-sized sporting equipment. Oh, and a changing table! You’ll need that.”

Victoria was beginning to feel queasy, and not just because of her so-called morning sickness.

“What do you think, Vicky?”

“Better. But I’m still not sure what you’re picturing it’s going to do with the desk.”

“That’s for him to grow into,” Ted had insisted. “In fact, maybe while I’m at it, I should order a case for his golf trophies.”

“Whatever you like, Ted.”

“What do you think of the chair? Will it be comfortable enough for you?” Victoria shrugged. “If you find another one you’d like better, please let me know. After all, you’re the one who’s going to be nursing him in it.” Ted gave Victoria a kiss on the cheek. “Good night, Vicky.”

He went right to sleep. She stayed up another two hours angrily pacing and swallowing lumps of chocolate ice cream, much to Penelope’s horror when she found the empty carton in the trash the next morning.

* * *

On the first Sunday in October, after Victoria’s second wellness checkup confirmed that the baby was still healthy and growing, she and Ted took their families out to a French restaurant twenty minutes outside of Tree Hill. The menus had scarcely been set on the table when Ted burst out with the news. A cacophony of cheers and congratulations followed. It wasn’t as exhausting as Victoria had expected, because after a minute, Mother and Penelope started hugging _each other_ and crying over their new shared grandchild.

“Imagine, Barbara,” Penelope squeezed the other woman’s shoulders. “You’re going to be the grandmother of a Davis!”

“Robert Theodore Davis III,” Ted interjected. That earned him a crushing hug from his mother.

“The moment we get home, I am going to get all your old baby clothes out of the attic. The monogrammed ones, with your initials on them! He should be able to use most of them.” Penelope turned to Victoria. “You’ll have to be careful not to dress him too warmly. Teddy was an October baby, and your baby will be born…what’s nine months from now? May?”

“Actually, Mother, Vicky is already a few months along,” Ted explained. “He’s due in March.”

Penelope’s face turned pale. “You’ve been pregnant for _months_? And…you’ve been spraying that lavender poison on yourself this whole time?”

It took Victoria a moment to realize that Penelope was talking about her favorite perfume.

“Trust me, darling, it goes directly into your bloodstream every time you breathe it in,” Penelope explained, her lip trembling. “It _doubles_ your risk of a stillbirth!”

“Actually, I think that’s cigarette smoke.”

Mother sighed. “Hush now, Victoria. What do _you_ know about pregnancy?”

“Smoking is _good_ for boys,” Penelope stated as if Victoria had the IQ of a houseplant. “Cleanses their lungs. That’s how my Robert, may he rest in peace, lived to be 58.”

“What if it’s a girl?” Victoria asked flatly. “Then should I smoke?”

“You’re having a boy. Remember dear, I have been a Davis far longer than you, and I know that for the past five generations, all of the firstborn sons in this family have been boys. Now, here are some other rules you should follow. No more raising your arms above your shoulders for any reason, or the baby will stop breathing. No more hair products other than simple shampoo, or he’ll be bad at math. Don’t spend too much time rubbing your belly, or he will go gay.”

“And don’t forget,” AJ sat up straight. “Make sure you drink lots of water or he’ll be born dirty.”

“Anthony junior, _hush,”_ Mother hissed.

Just then, the waiter came over to ask if anyone was ready to order. “No foreign spices for her,” Penelope interjected, grabbing Victoria. “They cause blindness!” Penelope turned to Victoria’s mother. “Don’t worry, Barbara. I’m going to make sure that our baby gets the very best of care.”

* * *

As the weeks went by, Penelope’s insufferable hovering grew with Victoria’s emerging belly bump. She threw away most of the beauty products Victoria owned, including all of the perfume, and began following her everywhere, in and out of the house. She made sure that Victoria didn’t stretch, dip her feet in the pool, cut her hair, or step within ten feet of the Over Easy Diner. (“Your son will grow up fat if you eat that stuff now.”)

“Ted, please,” Victoria begged. “Say something to her! I can’t live like this for the next five months. She’s driving me insane.”

“I’m not quite sure what to do, my love,” Ted leaned over and gave Victoria a kiss on the cheek. “She’s my mother.”

“This morning, she knocked on the bathroom door while I was showering to make sure I didn’t have the water on too hot,” Victoria rolled over. “I feel like…I’m being stalked in my own house.”

Ted turned to face her. “That’s a bit harsh, isn’t it? She’s only trying to help.”

That may have been true, but Victoria was over being smothered by people who claimed that they were only trying to help her.

“I’ll be fine, Ted.”

“That’s good,” Ted gave Victoria a kiss on the cheek. “Good night.”

That wasn’t exactly the response that Victoria had been looking for, but she was too tired to argue. She embraced Ted when he climbed under the blanket and snuggled up beside her. She closed her eyes, ready to settle in for the night.

“Maybe you should ask Mother about that diet she’s always raving about.”

Victoria’s eyes flew open.

“Excuse me?”

“It’s…not your fault, Vicky. You were craving chocolate ice cream for weeks.”

“I’m pregnant, Ted. I’m growing a human being.”

“Yes, in your uterus. Not in each thigh. Or your behind.”

Victoria shrugged him off. Then she rolled over in bed and slept with the covers all to herself.

The next night, Ted started sleeping in one of the guest rooms. “Well, you’re pregnant, so you’ll need more room in the bed.” The message was clear: no more sex until you lose some of that weight. Well, that was just fine with her. Let him go be horny and lonely down the hall while she stretched out by herself and hoarded fashion books and magazines.

He did come to her bedroom every night to talk to the baby. He would lay down on the edge of the bed, propped up on one arm, and lean in as close to her belly as possible.

“Soon, I’m going to take you out on that golf course with me, son. You’ll have your own clubs, your own outfit…wait until the guys get a good look at you in your golfing outfit. You’re going to be so handsome. Just like your father. I hope you get my strong chin, and your mother’s beautiful grey eyes with their flecks of ocean green.”

Victoria smiled in spite of herself.

“What about when he’s little?” Ted looked up. “What will you do with him until he’s old enough to play golf?”

“I’ll take him out on the lawn, teach him how to catch a ball. I’ll walk around town with him on my shoulders. We’ll get ice cream, and we’ll feed the ducks,” Ted rubbed Victoria’s belly thoughtfully. “What should we call him, Vicky?”

“I thought you already named him.”

“I mean, what nickname? Rob? Bert? Theo? Maybe we should just call him Junior.”

“No way. How about Bobby?”

“Eh. Won’t he grow out of that one?”

“Your mother still calls you Teddy,” Victoria pointed out.

“True.”

After a few more minutes of whispering and kissing, Ted got up to leave.

“Ted?” He turned back around. “What if it’s a girl? What should we call her then?”

“If it’s a girl, you can name her whatever you want.”


	10. War Babies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some disturbing information leads Victoria to reflect on her choices, and the choices that have been made for her.

As she sipped a cup of peppermint tea, Victoria gazed at the current page of the pin-up calendar on the kitchen wall. A rosy-cheeked family rolling together a fluffy snowman, skyscrapers and bridges in the background. “Christmas in Brooklyn,” it was called, the print as small and distant as Victoria’s dream of Ladeaux was beginning to feel.

Victoria hadn’t heard back from any of the fashion schools she’d applied to. Nothing, not even a rejection letter. It was just as well. If she got in now, she’d have to defer admission anyway. She’d already known that starting in the spring would be out of the question with her March due date, but starting in the fall while nursing a five-month-old baby day and night might not be realistic, either.

“Victoria!” the shout came moments before Penelope’s clunky silver heels brought her around the corner. “What do you think you’re doing in here?”

“I’m getting a snack,” Victoria lied. In truth, she’d been hoping to scrounge together some ingredients for gingerbread cookies. The one thing she’d always been able to count on around the holidays was time in the kitchen, when Mother went on her big shopping trips and brought Kate Porter along to help carry bags. This year she didn’t even have that, which killed any chance Victoria had at getting into the Christmas spirit.

“I told you, we have people for that. And you need to get outside! Sixty minutes of fresh air a day for his lung development. Go get dressed in something appropriate.”

Victoria looked down at her bulging designer top, and her navel peaking out from underneath and threatening to rip her leggings at the seams. Her expanding rear didn’t help with that fact. Her limbs, feet, and even her _fingers_ were thicker than they’d ever been. Nearly three months to go and she felt like a whale.

“And for heaven sakes, cover your feet before you catch cold! I won’t have you risking my grandchild for a pair of oversized beach sandals.”

“These are the only clothes that _fit anymore_.”

Penelope scoffed. “Well, why didn’t you say so? I’ll send one of the girls to retrieve my old maternity outfits from storage.”

“Yes, because _that’s_ what I need,” Victoria muttered as she had flashes of covering her body in 1960’s maternity garb and being seen by her friends and family. Her mother-in-law apparently did not detect the sarcasm in her voice, because she banished Victoria to the great outdoors and immediately went upstairs looking for one of the servants.

Victoria didn’t dare sit down in a lawn chair for fear that she wouldn’t be able to stand back up on her own. She paced aimlessly back and forth in the yard behind the Davis mansion, noting the spot where she’d walked down the aisle. It had deteriorated since the wedding. Bare trees, browning grass, stiff, dry flowers. It had received very little care since May. Only tended to until it looked pretty, then left to its own devices.

“Hey there, pretty lady!”

Victoria’s cheeks lit up for the first time in days when she heard her sister’s voice coming from behind. Justine rushed over to hug Victoria, then pulled back when she saw the huge baby bump. She leaned in gently and gave Victoria a squeeze with one arm while stroking the bump with the other.

“There’s no kicking right now,” said Victoria. “I think it’s asleep.”

“Victoria, I mean this in the most loving way possible, but are you sure there’s only one of him?”

Victoria playfully smacked Justine upside the head, then kissed her cheek.

“God, I hate Cousin Margaret. Did you see her Christmas card? She’s more pregnant than I am, and all she has to show for it is a cute little bump. Like she shoved a basketball up her dress.”

Although, the worst thing about Victoria’s figure wasn’t even the undue expansion of her entire body. It was the fact that her pregnancy was now obvious enough to elicit congratulations from everyone she came across. Penelope’s friends from the country club were the worst. The first thing out of their mouths anytime they saw Victoria was “how is he doing?” and they always asked it with this knowing smile, like there was some sort of mutual understanding among all women that motherhood was the most magical thing in the world. It was downright aggravating. Victoria was enjoying nothing about this pregnancy, least of all knowing that it was going to result in a baby.

“Screw her,” said Justine. “If it makes you feel better, Karen’s gained a lot of weight, too.” Victoria quirked an eyebrow in confusion. “You know she’s pregnant, right?”

 _“What?_ _Your_ Karen, who's with the beloved point guard?”

“Well, they’re not together anymore. But yeah, she’s having his baby.”

Great. Victoria shared her only accomplishment of the year with an eighteen-year-old cheerleader.

“So…” Justine lowered her voice. “How’s life with the smother-in-law you’ve written me so much about?”

“Unbearable! She’s the most paranoid person I have ever met. The other day she told me it’s a good thing that Ted has been gone so much because _sex_ could hurt the baby.”

Justine’s nose wrinkled. “Ew! God, I don’t think I ever want to get married or have kids now.”

“Famous last words.”

“Knock on wood. And what do you mean, Ted has been gone?”

“His company has been sending him to conference after conference,” Victoria complained. “Every other week he’s missing for days. He says it’s a good thing, getting more responsibilities at work.” Victoria cleared her throat. “How are you? How was Africa?”

Victoria and Justine walked the perimeter of the yard for an hour while Justine told Victoria about the exotic places she’d been, the things she’d seen, and the people she’d met. Victoria smiled and put on a brave face as her sister’s eyes sparkled through stories of her travels. If it anyone was worth trying to be happy for, it was Justine, but it was difficult. Their age difference was less than five years, but Justine’s days of adventure and excitement were present while Victoria’s were past. Thanks to Mother, Ted Davis, and their precious little parasite.

“What’s your next plan?” Victoria finally asked as Justine was finishing up a tale of handing out pencils and paper to schoolchildren who were used to slates.

Justine groaned. “Don’t be like Mother and Father, V. I just got back.”

“Of course.”

She’d forgotten how irritating it had been to have adults constantly asking about her future. Now, she wasn’t even supposed to _have_ a future. In their eyes, the baby was Victoria’s final destination.

Well, she had news for them. She was _only_ having the baby to give Ted his dream. Because if she gave him his dream, then he would have to give her hers, too.

* * *

Three days later, Ted arrived home from his latest conference. He swooped in, greeted Victoria and then Penelope, and stepped straight into the shower. Shortly after, Victoria went into the guestroom, where he still slept, looking for him. His suitcase was laying open on the bed, so she hung up his jackets and his suit so that they wouldn’t wrinkle, put his heartburn medication by the bed, put the belts away in a drawer, and dumped all the dirty clothes in the laundry hamper along with a sealed plastic bag she hadn’t noticed before. She reached into the hamper and retrieved the object.

A bulk bag of condoms.

Two harsh knocks came on the door. “Mrs. Davis, I’m here for the laundry.”

Victoria shoved the bag back into Ted’s suitcase, and the suitcase under the bed.

“Come in!”

As the housekeeper made her quick entrance and exit, Victoria sat down on the edge of the bed. Hot blood coursed through her veins. Her head pounded. The creature that Ted had implanted in her stomach writhed away.

A short while later, Ted returned to the bedroom with smiles and excuses. “Oh darling, those are for us.” “A funny little surprise gift for after the baby was born.” “You didn’t think I was…did you?” “I’m so sorry I frightened you, Vicky.” He brought Victoria down to dinner with his mother, where Victoria smiled politely until her cheeks stung and forced herself to choke down half a helping of eggs benedict before using her parasite as an excuse to retire. Upon abandoning the family dinner, she immediately headed for Ted’s office and perused his drawers until she located the previous month’s bank statement.

_November 2 nd-Mariott Bar, $18_

_November 3 rd\- Mariott room service, $42.65_

_November 9 th\- Radisson Bar, $21.50_

_November 10 th\- Radisson, room service, $41.90_

_November 13 th-Blue Iguana admission $10.99_

_November 13 th-Blue Iguana bar, $29.89_

_November 14 th- Hilton, room service, $39.72_

_November 21 st-ATM withdrawl, $100_

_November 21 st-Dancing Bare bar, $15.78_

_November 22 nd\- Mariott, room service, $45.83_

Ted never ordered room service. Not unless he had someone to share it with.

When she heard the stairs creaking with movement, Victoria quickly shoved the evidence back in its proper place and stood up. Her stomach churned.

“Looking for something?” asked Ted, his voice laced with concern.

Victoria gave him a cold, hard stare.

“No,” she said flatly.

Ted shot her an uneasy smile. “Well, don’t go snooping around for your Christmas presents. You can wait until tomorrow like everyone else.”

Victoria’s head spun as Ted pressed a quick, light kiss to her cheek, in the same spot he always did, right below her cheekbone. Was that his go-to spot on every girl? Or did he kiss them somewhere else? Or maybe he didn’t kiss them at all. Maybe he only fucked them.

How many had there been, this month and last?

When had it started? How long after moving out of her bedroom had he waited before sliding into someone else’s? Did he always bring them back to his hotel room? Had he been to any of their homes? Were they all from out of state, conference hookups never to be seen again? Or were any of them from Tree Hill?

Did he compare them to her? Did he think they were prettier than her, even when she was svelte? Did he enjoy them more than her? Did he _like_ them better than her?

Did he always buy them drinks? Breakfast?

Did he leave his ring on, or take it off?

Did he always remember to wear a condom?

“You look tired, Vicky,” Ted smiled and gently stroked her belly. “Go get some rest.”

Victoria mumbled her thanks. Then she went to her bathroom to throw up.

She laid down on her bed for along time, awake. She felt the fetus kick her, adding injury to insult.

“You were supposed to _help_ my marriage.”

* * *

The silver lining surrounding Mother’s friendship with Penelope was that Ted and Victoria didn’t have to discuss which of their families to spend Christmas with. It was decided for them that they would all eat at the Montgomery’s house, which Victoria’s mother bizarrely insisted on despite the fact that the entirety of the first floor could fit in the Davis family foyer.

A hearty homemade five-course meal was served. Vegetable soup, kale salad, roast duck with a side of sweet potatoes, rosemary focaccia, and pecan pie. Victoria watched poor Kate Porter scurry to and from the kitchen, her long blonde hair in a braid down her back, clearing and then serving plate after plate. Mother stayed put at the table, mainly engaging in polite conversation with Penelope and Ted, acting as though she would never lift a finger in her own home or kitchen. As though she definitely hadn't been the one to perfect the recipe for rosemary focaccia or handpick every single vegetable that went in the salad or poured hours into meal prep before everyone else got there, and Justine and AJ hadn't helped clean the house and wouldn't be doing dishes all night.

"Barbara, this meal was absolutely delightful. And I can see that you followed my suggestion to get yourself some proper drapes, which makes your home look more beautiful than ever. I daresay there may be hope for you yet!"

Victoria looked at Mother, who was beaming as though she had just been handed the crown.

As they were polishing off the last of dessert, Ted excused himself to make a business call on his car phone. Mother went upstairs to lie down at around the same time, leaving Victoria alone with her father, siblings, and mother-in-law.

“Listen, Victoria, you’re nearly seven months pregnant!” said Penelope. “Time is running out. You have got to decide what instrument he’s going to learn how to play before Kindergarten.”

“I don’t know what my child’s hobbies are. It hasn’t been born yet.”

Penelope clicked her tongue. “Don’t give me that. It is _your_ job as his mother to decide what activities he’s going to enjoy. I highly recommend the octave mandolin. Teaches precision.”

“Shouldn’t his first talent be something a little more manly?” Father interjected.

Penelope scoffed. “Like what? Arm wrestling?”

“No. Like…baseball.”

Penelope’s features contorted with disgust. “One of those dirt sports? You can’t be serious! He’ll be learning golf. And horseback riding.”

“You're so right, Penelope," said AJ. "It doesn't get any cleaner than horseback riding."

Victoria set her fork down. “Wow, would you look at that. It’s time for my daily walk. Got to go get some air while it's still warm out.” She placed her crumpled napkin on the table beside her plate, got up, and marched out of the room and out the townhouse’s back door as fast as her pregnant body would let her move.

The yard around her was empty and lonely but for the tiny shed. Gavin’s shed.

Would Victoria feel any differently about this unborn child if it was Gavin’s instead of Ted’s? Maybe she would. Gavin wouldn’t be using it as an excuse to cheat on her. Then again, Gavin wouldn’t have forced her to keep it in the first place.

The thought of what could have been made Victoria physically ache. She imagined herself stretched out on a worn and torn couch in Gavin’s lap. Sweet kisses on her face, brass wedding rings on clasped hands. _“I love you, Mrs. Campbell.”_

Victoria felt her heart skip a beat when she heard a noise coming from inside the shed, one that she knew she recognized but wasn’t sure how.

She hustled up to the worn building and pressed her ear to a crack in the wood. She couldn’t see anything, it was too dim inside. But she could make out the faint laugh of a woman.

“I’m so glad you managed to sneak away for a moment, Lemonpuff.”

Victoria froze. That was Kate Porter’s voice! The housekeeper was out here with someone...someone who she called Lemonpuff...

“Oh, hush now. I didn’t do it for any bonus, I did it to give you the Christmas of your dreams.” A pause, some mumbling. “Shhh. I’m glad you liked the pie. But I hope you know I saved the sweetest surprise of all for you.”

Victoria turned and looked back at the house, through the window. It was still just her father, Mrs. Davis, Justine , and AJ at the table. No sign of Ted.

Laughing.

_Thunk._

The sound of the card table against the shed wall.

Giggling.

“Shhh! Uh-uh-uh! It’s my turn to jingle _your_ sleigh bells today.”

_Thunk._

Gavin and Victoria’s table.

Victoria’s frozen fingertips reached for the doorknob and flung open the peeling wooden door with such force that it slammed back against the outside of the shed with a sickening crack. There was the back of Kate Porter’s teal Versace dress, disheveled golden braid, and in front of her, two bare legs dangling from the side of the table.

“Robert Theodore Davis jr!” yelled Victoria as she flung open the door. “What the _hell_ do you have to say for yourself?”

But the person who Kate had shielded from Victoria’s view was not her husband.

She felt her breath shorten and her pulse race as the object of the housekeeper's affections pulled herself into a sloppy sitting position. The card table rattled again. _Thunk_.

It took Victoria’s lips a moment to form the words her mind was screaming.

“Mother, what is this?”

“Darling, I can explain.”

“Explain…that you’re doing the _exact same thing_ that you threatened to disown me for a year ago?”

“Don’t you dare give me that!” snapped Mother, standing up and allowing her skirt to roll down over her legs. “This is _nothing_ like what happened between you and that septic cleaner!” She seemed to fumble for words for a moment, then turned back to her lover. “Kate, get back to the house! Go the long way!”

When the blonde had disappeared out the back gate-a route that Victoria was all too familiar with-Mother scraped together what was left of her dignity and slipped into a pair of brown loafers.

“I told you, Victoria. People like Gavin…people like _them_ …are like chocolates. They’re good for dessert, but not for sustenance. Sex is completely harmless, as long as it’s never confused with love. _That_ was your mistake!”

“Oh yeah?” Victoria moved as close as she could possibly get to Mother without touching her. “What do _you_ know about love? How can you love _me_ and force me to live a life that you _know_ isn’t going to make me happy?”

“What are you talking about? Ted is a _good_ man! I know that if you just try, the two of you can be good together. Just like your father and I.”

Victoria stopped for a moment. Then she laughed, loud and hard.

“Well, Mother, I have good news for you! That perfect husband you handpicked for me? He’s been liberally fucking his way across America for months. So guess what? I _do_ have a marriage just like father and you! One built on money and lies.” Victoria opened the shed door. “Congratulations, Mother. You closed the deal.”

When Victoria reentered the house, cheeks flaming, Ted had rejoined his mother at the table. He looked up at her, concern flashing across his face.

“Are you quite alright darling?”

Victoria avoided everyone’s gaze but his.

“I’m tired. I’m going home to lie down.”

He got up quickly. “I’ll drive you.”

She stormed out of the house without saying goodbye.


	11. The Needle and the Damage Done

After the disastrous Christmas dinner, Victoria shut herself in her room and refused to set foot off the Davis property for anything. Ted apparently thought it was all because she’d figured out he was cheating on her, so his solution was to spend all his time at the club for a few days and then head back out on business as soon as the opportunity arose. Coward.

When Victoria and Penelope were both invited to the Montgomery house for New Year’s Day dinner, Victoria said she was too sick to go. The next morning, Penelope stormed her room with a lecture.

“You really need to let it go. She’s your mother! She has been caring for you and making sacrifices for you her whole life! So what if you think she borrowed a blouse from you and never gave it back?”

Leave it to Penelope to buy that excuse for their fight.

By in large, Victoria’s mother-in-law was happy with her new habits. She stopped following Victoria around like an eager puppy dog, but she did drop parenting tips throughout the day. “You’ll need to take him for wellness checkups every six months no matter what.” “If he’s not good at math he’ll need two hours of tutoring per day until he catches up, worked for my Teddy.” “Don’t let him pet animals as a young child or it will become a habit.”

Victoria wasn’t required to sit at the dining table anymore. Wherever she was, maids came to her three times a day to deliver meals, which thanks to Penelope were painfully bland. After going through all the available fashion magazines and celebrity gossip magazines twice, Victoria forced herself to start in on her Christmas presents, which amounted to half a dozen parenting manuals. She learned about how important connecting with her baby would be for its development, how easily babies and young children got sick, and worst of all, that some babies didn’t sleep through the night until they were one and nursed until they were two.

Fashion school wasn’t going to happen next fall. It wasn’t going to happen for _years._

One of the books was full of step-by-step instructions on how to change a diaper, nurse, dress, bathe, and soothe. Victoria was saving that one for last. Just looking at the table of contents was giving her a migraine.

Every few days, Justine breezed through with fresh magazines, brownies smuggled from the Over Easy Diner, and questions. “I don’t get what you and Mother are both so upset about. It’s just a blouse.” The temptation to tell her sister what had happened was strong. But Justine didn’t need to hear any more family secrets after what happened with Gavin. So Victoria kept her mother’s infidelity, and Ted’s, to herself.

Sometimes, Victoria fantasized about packing her duffle bag and a box and stepping out in the dead of night, never to see anyone with the name Davis again. She could do it, she told herself, if she had somewhere to go. But she didn’t. Gavin might laugh in her face if she went to him for help, which she would deserve. Her friends would tell her to be a good little uptown girl and work things out with her husband. It would be a cold day in hell before she could count on her parents.

One cold February morning, the housekeeper knocked on Victoria’s bedroom door.

“Victoria, your mother is here to see you.”

Victoria rose to her feet. “I’m coming.” Time to get it over with.

Victoria brought the latest edition of _People_ down to the parlor with her. She didn't look up from the article she was reading when Mother walked in and sat down in the chair opposite hers.

“This may mean very little to you, Victoria. But I am so sorry you had to see what you saw. And I am extremely grateful for your discretion.” She paused to wait for a response, then cleared her throat and continued when she got none. “I don't expect you to understand it. There's just one thing I need you to know. I _love_ being married to your father. I always have. He's a wonderful man. He's always seen to it that I'm comfortable and cared for. He's always taken my thoughts and wishes into account. We've walked through our whole lives side by side. For that, I have grown to love him."

"Were you ever _in_ love with him?"

“In love is just a state of mind. It never lasts.”

That answered that question.

“But when you find a connection with another person, and build on that connection and form a close relationship with them, it can lead to something enduring and meaningful. _That's_ what I wanted for you, Victoria. I saw the potential for that connection between you and Ted and I did everything in my power to make you see the same thing. Because I do love you. And I do want you to be happy."

Victoria finally lifted her head, her pearly eyes swiveling to meet the ones mirrored back at her.

"Gavin and I had that connection. And we also had love. We had the best of both worlds, and we lost it because of you."

Mother shook her head. "What you and Gavin had wasn't rational. You may not see that now. But you will someday.”

The condescendence in that sentiment went a step too far.

“I’ve been thinking about everything you said,” Victoria began. “About confusing sex with love. But you see, I don’t think I’m the one who’s confused. You’ve had Kate Porter as your private housekeeper for how long now? Twenty-five years? That's longer than some marriages. And you still do _everything_ together. You cook together, you clean together, you have that project you’ve been working on in the attic for…” Victoria’s cheeks flushed as she realized that there was no “project in the attic.”

"Of _course_ we do everything together," Mother snapped. "That's what I pay her for."

"To jingle your sleigh bells?"

Mother's cheeks turned bright crimson. “Victoria, _shut up,"_

Victoria barely held back a smile. She’d been right. About everything.

“Get out of my house.”

“Gladly.”

Mother quickly made her exit, leaving Victoria to another exciting afternoon of nothing.

* * *

A few days later, Ted came home to oversee the setup of the baby’s nursery. Victoria and Penelope were only allowed to come in when it was finished. Sure enough, everything he had ever wanted for his son was in that black, white, and gold room. Empty trophy case and all. Victoria and Penelope smiled and nodded approvingly at his handiwork, then the moment Ted left for the airport, each woman concluded that if they wanted the baby to have anything practical in his room when he was born, they would have to buy it themselves. Unfortunately, that was where their agreement ended.

“I really wish that you would let me take care of all the shopping, Victoria,” Penelope lamented as Victoria climbed into the passenger side of the car. “You really shouldn’t spend more than two hours a day sitting straight up.”

Victoria folded her hands in her lap and locked her gaze on a stray raindrop sliding down the window.

“You ought to go inside and get some rest.”

Victoria turned her head. “Are you going to drive me to Babies R’Us, or am I taking a cab?”

Penelope clicked her tongue. “Don’t be ridiculous. We’re going to The Baby Emporium. They’ve had far fewer recalls.”

Victoria nodded. Both women, having compromised, settled in for the half-hour drive as the engine went into gear. Victoria pulled out the shopping list she’d compiled from her books.

“We’ll need clothing, diapers, a baby bathtub, bottles, rubber nipples, a mobile…”

“Mobiles give babies headaches,” Penelope cut in. “I should know. The one I bought for Ted nearly caused him to go blind. And we might as well hold off on purchasing any baby bottles until we know for sure if your breasts have dried up from all those baths you’ve been taking. Baby formula causes ulcers.”

After that, Victoria held off on speaking until they arrived at The Baby Emporium, where she and Penelope argued over the purchase of a baby bathtub for fifteen minute. Then, they decided to go buy diapers. Victoria asked a salesperson for advice before grabbing a few hundred diapers of her chosen variety and placing them at the bottom of the cart, just in time for Penelope to shuffle up to her with a full shopping basket.

“Victoria, what are you doing?” the older woman demanded. “You can’t put him in disposable diapers! Babies can only safely wear garments made of cotton. Like these!”

Victoria stared into the basket full of blue cotton diapers.

“How would we even get those clean?”

“We’ll have someone scrub them off in the toilet, then run them through the washing machine. Simple.”

Victoria soldiered ahead to the clothing section, where she found a cute teddy bear onesie in the 0-3 months section and placed it in her cart.

“What are you doing? He can’t wear that. He has to be covered from neck to toe!”

“Why? We live in North Carolina. It will be warm.”

“Babies have to be covered all the time to avoid making direct contact with other people.”

“All the books say that skin-to-skin contact is _good_ for infants.”

Penelope shook her head. “This is why you need me. The first few months of a baby’s life are critical. If you coddle them too much, they will grow up to be self-entitled and self-centered.”

“Oh, so _that’s_ what happened to Ted.”

At that moment, if Penelope Davis had been hit by lightning, she would not have looked more stunned.

“This, here,” Victoria pointed to her baby bump with both index fingers, “Is _my_ kid. Not yours. And I say that it _doesn’t_ have be covered from head to toe, and that no one is going to have to handwash anything covered with excrement just so that he can feel like he’s pooping on a cloud.”

“Don’t be ridiculous!” Penelope snapped. “You’ve never done this before. What makes you think that whatever you’ve read in those books trumps real life experience?”

“Because I’m sick and tired of your stupid advice!”

“Well excuse me, I’m just trying to prevent something _tragic_ from happening.” Penelope’s voice broke. “You want your child to live, don’t you?”

“That’s it!” Victoria grasped the handle of the shopping cart with both hands. “ _I’m_ doing the rest of the shopping. By myself. I’ll see you at home.”

Victoria heard a stifled wail as she stormed off, but she didn’t look back.

* * *

Still fuming, Victoria went into the nursery to begin putting away her newly acquired baby accessories. She knew that Penelope would be inclined to either do it herself or have a maid do it, because after all, maybe Victoria would accidentally put the baby’s socks in the wrong drawer and her child would end up _dying._

“I’ve got to put a lock on this room,” Victoria whispered to herself as she emptied out the shopping bags onto the bare crib mattress. Should she have the clothes and blankets washed before putting them away, or just do it? Have them washed, of course. The disposable diapers could go under the changing table, along with all the diaper creams and wipes, the bathing supplies and first aid stuff could go in their own baskets on the shelves in the trophy case, the little yellow star-shaped nightlight could go in the wall next to the crib, the matching lamp could go on the desk, and Victoria knew all that _because this was her goddamn baby._

“Where can we put this stupid TV stand?” she asked herself. All it was doing right now was taking up space. Fortunately, the TV stand had wheels. So Victoria could find a place to put this thing herself right now, and then _she_ would decide was she going to do with that corner of _her_ baby’s room.

Out in the hall outside the baby’s nursery, Victoria saw three doors, one of which led to Ted’s office, one of which led to the room he’d been sleeping in. No way was she going into either of those rooms. So Victoria used her knees to pushed the TV stand over to door number three and opened it...

Only to end up in Strawberry Shortcake and Hello Kitty’s secret clubhouse.

Bubblegum pink ceiling, walls, and carpet, cherry red rocking chair, crib, and wall decorations; and, just for variety, a purple monkey sat inside the crib atop a pink sheet, lonely and layered with dust. Above the crib, in bright red letters, the name “Judith Hope Davis” was painted.

 _Where am I?_ thought Victoria. _Is this Ted’s secret backup plan?_

Victoria turned around. On the surface of the red bureau was an array of black-and-white photographs in pink frames. A tiny fair-haired baby girl in a hospital bassinet. In a young Penelope’s arms. Being kissed on the forehead by a little boy. On the program for a funeral.

“Don’t touch anything!”

Victoria looked up when she saw that Penelope had entered the room. The older woman’s harried face softened when she saw the genuine surprise on Victoria’s.

Penelope joined Victoria by the display of photographs. Victoria looked down at the photo of her mother-in-law as a young mom and felt like she was looking at a stranger. A much happier, freer person than the one she knew.

“What happened to your daughter?”

Penelope closed her eyes for a moment, and brought a hand to her heart. Victoria considered the question retracted, but after a moment, the woman spoke.

“Her heart was weak.” Penelope paused to let a few tears slide down her cheek. “She was supposed to be named Judith Penelope. But when I saw how frightened the doctors were, I decided to call her Hope. Because that’s what I had for her.”

Victoria looked at the dates on the funeral program. They were only five days apart.

“Ted was only two years old. He doesn’t remember a thing. No one alive does, other than me.”

“I’m sorry,” said Victoria. “I didn’t know.”

Victoria stepped out of the room. Penelope followed suit, and closed the door behind. Out in the hall, she dried her tears.

“My children are the best of my life,” Penelope said. “Just like yours will be. You’ll see. I always told Ted that if he just indulged your silly fantasies about fashion school and leaving North Carolina long enough to make _this_ happen,” she gestured to the pregnancy bump with a smile, “You’d forget all about it soon enough.”

Victoria’s sympathy crumbled and melted.

“What?”

“Shhh,” Penelope reached her arms around Victoria’s stone still body and enveloped her in an awkward hug. “You’ll be all right, dear. If it hasn’t happened for you by now, it will soon. You’re a woman.” Penelope pulled back and smoothed Victoria’s hair. “You’re a _Davis.”_

“Ted lied to me,” Victoria was unable to stop the words from falling out of her mouth. “From the very beginning, it was all an act.”

“I know my son’s not perfect, dear. But I can promise you this. The Davis men are nothing if not loyal to a fault. You’ll see. If my darling Robert, may he rest in peace, could forgive me for failing his only daughter, Ted can forgive your shortcomings, too. Make him a happy home, and he’ll be good to you.”

Victoria’s head was spinning.

No one in her world- _no one_ -was who she’d thought they’d been. Justine. Mother. Penelope. _Ted._

One thing was for sure: if Ted wasn’t going to hold up his end of their bargain, then neither was she.


	12. Garden of Hate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ted must face the consequences of his actions.

Victoria kept her simmering rage private. Her husband received nothing but compliments, her mother-in-law dutiful smiles, her parents polite phone calls. Each one considered themselves forgiven, and was happy with everything Victoria was doing to express her gratitude towards them and prepare for her life as a mother. She was finally showing them the girl that they had always assumed she would become.

It was frightening to know that no one recognized her anymore.

Justine was the person who might have been able to piece it together. For this reason, Victoria avoided her.

During a family dinner on the last weekend in February, Victoria announced that she had scheduled her C-section for March 4th, two days before her planned due date.

“Why?” Mother asked. “Is he breach?”

“Is he too fat to come out?” AJ chimed in.

“Anthony Junior _, stop._ ”

“You’re not having a C-section,” said Penelope. “They’re dangerous.”

“Actually, it’s a lot safer than a vaginal birth,” Victoria spoke up calmly. “It reduces the risk of fetal distress and birth defects.”

The older woman stared at her for a moment.

“She’s having a C-section.”

Ted shifted uncomfortably. “Will we be in the room when you’re…" he made a vague gesture, "Open?”

“It’s actually safer if you’re not,” Victoria explained. “You can meet me in the recovery room after it’s done, but during the actual operation there should be as few people in the room as possible. Germs, you know?”

Ted breathed a sigh of relief and nodded in agreement. After that, anyone who dared question Victoria’s plans had to answer to Penelope Davis. So conversation quickly turned to Justine and AJ’s college plans. AJ had been working hard to impress some talent scouts with his basketball skills, but his backup plan was to attend the University of North Carolina.

“He’ll major in business, just like his father,” Mother said reassuringly. “And so will Justine, when she transfers to UNC from Tree Hill College next year.”

“Actually…” Justine began. All heads swiveled in her direction. “I wanted to talk to you about that.”

“Oh?” Mother raised an eyebrow. “What would you like to study?”

Justine took a deep breath.

“Nursing.”

Mother pursed her lips.

“I suppose that would be a good way to meet young men who are looking to become doctors. And it only takes two years.” Justine didn’t say anything. “Yes. You may study nursing.”

Justine’s face lit up with a nervous smile. Something told Victoria that her sister’s reason for going into the healthcare field had nothing to do with finding a husband.

* * *

On the morning of her C-secion, Victoria managed to convince everyone not to come with her to the hospital. She didn’t want them to waste their day waiting, she said, they’d get a call when it was all over, she said, the fewer germs she was exposed to on the day of the better, she said. To sell that last point, she got out of Penelope’s car wearing a medical mask, then threw it away the second she got inside

A thin-lipped receptionist handed Victoria a stack of consent forms, watched her flip through, skim, and sign.

“Can I safely assume that you’ve been made aware of the…long-term effects of the procedure you’re about to have?”

“Absolutely.”

Victoria's determined expression put the nurse off from asking any further questions.

“I’ll let them know you’re ready. Wait just a few minutes.”

Victoria absently placed one hand on her stomach and felt the baby kick at her three times in rapid succession. It was impatient. Just like its father.

The sound of slow, clunky footsteps alerted Victoria that someone was approaching the hallway a few moments before he rounded the corner. As soon as she saw and recognized him, she looked away quickly and stared at the pattern on the tiles. The man casually paced by her, then suddenly paused and turned around.

“Victoria?”

She pretended not to hear him for a full thirty seconds, when she finally looked up and met the incredulous stare of Gavin’s bandmate.

“Hello, Mike.”

“You told Gavin you didn’t want kids,” he said flatly.

Victoria looked back down again. She felt Mike’s harsh gaze on her for another twenty seconds or so before he turned and ambled off down the hallway. She felt strangely violated, both by his assumptions about her and by the fact that it still hurt like hell to imagine them being passed on to Gavin.

A door opened. A nurse stepped out.

“V. Davis?”

Victoria stood up.

“Who else will be joining us today?”

Victoria shook her head. “No one.”

“Are you sure?”

“I don’t want to see anyone until it’s over,” Victoria said firmly. She repeated this several times in the next few minutes, to three nurses, an anesthesiologist, and a surgeon. After she changed into a paper gown and laid down on a gurney, the indelicacies began. Arm fitted with a needle. Abdomen scrubbed and shaved bare. Chest exposed and fitted with monitors. A small television in the corner played old episodes of _Days of Our Lives_ while doctors and nurses rubbed and plucked, fussed and fooled as the lower half of Victoria’s body went numb.

“Are you sure there’s no one you want to have with you _during_ the procedure?” a well-meaning overly peppy nurse asked Victoria again. She shook her head. Then, an oxygen mask was placed over her mouth and nose, rendering her unable to speak.

They moved to the operating room, where a curtain was stretched between Victoria’s chest and stomach to ensure that she couldn’t see her own exposed organs. The peppy nurse-an middle aged thing with sharp blue eyes surrounded by caked makeup-sat by Victoria and insisted on holding her hand.

“You’re doing so well, Miss Davis.” The nurse stroked Victoria’s shoulder. “Everything is going to be just fine.”

Victoria felt no pain, but she did feel movement. Lots of tugging and pulling, as though her organs were being untangled like Christmas lights. She was so focused on the odd sensation that she was startled by the sound of whimpering followed by a high-pitched indignant scream.

Oh, right.

The curtain was lowered, just a tiny bit. A sludge-covered lump of an infant was lifted into view, blood and white slime dripping from pale skin.

“Congratulations, Miss Davis!” the nurse squealed. “She’s perfect!”

A weary smile spread across Victoria’s face under her oxygen mask.

She’d been right. It _wasn’t_ the son that Ted had stolen her dream for.

“We’ll take good care of her, Miss Davis. As soon as we’re finished up with you, you’ll get to hold her!”

“Take all the time you need.”

* * *

As soon as Victoria was wheeled into the recovery room, her newborn daughter was brought to her wrapped in a white blanket. The red, wrinkly little person was crying softly, in a way that was almost endearing. The baby was set in Victoria’s arms, her skin even cleaner and softer than the cloth that swaddled her. Six pounds, six ounces, eighteen inches. A nurse helped undo part of Victoria’s hospital gown and guided her through nursing the baby for the first time.

Victoria was too weak to protest when Penelope and her mother came in, armed with gift bags and overnight bags and diaper bags. Once the baby was finished with her first meal, the two grandmothers took over, burping, diapering, soothing, oohing and ahing over all her little features and the way she fussed.

“This baby is a girl,” Penelope whispered incredulously, several times. “You’re a little girl!”

“What are you going to call her?” Mother asked.

“I don’t know, Ted said I could name her. Where is he, anyway?”

“He’s waiting with your father, darling,” said Mother. “Would you like to see him?”

Victoria shrugged, but Penelope was already setting the baby in Mother’s arms.

“I’ll go get Teddy for you,” Penelope said gently. “I forgot some of our things from the house. And Victoria…” the older woman hesitated. “I have a room ready for her. If you’d like it.”

Victoria smiled weakly. “We’d love it.”

Penelope bent down and gave Victoria a kiss on the forehead.

“I think I know what I'm going to name her,” Victoria said. “Brooklyn Penelope.”

Penelope swept Victoria in the closest thing she could manage to a hug with the younger woman anchored to the hospital bed. Mother, who knew exactly what Brooklyn meant to Victoria, scowled.

“Let’s call her Lynn for short.”

“That sounds perfect,” Penelope agreed.

 _“No,”_ Victoria protested. “That’s not her name.”

Penelope bent over the baby girl in Mother’s arms.

“Who’s my little Lynnie?”

“Stop,” Victoria snapped. “I changed my mind. It’s Brooke. One syllable.”

Penelope looked vaguely disappointed. Mother looked irritated.

“I’ll go wash her sheets and clothes,” said Penelope. “And I’ll send Teddy your way.”

The best part of Victoria’s day came about five minutes later, when her adulterous snake of a husband walked into the room, his face wrought with disappointment. She was barely able to hold back a grin.

“Mother, could you excuse us for a moment?”

Mother obliged, handing off the baby to Ted as she made her exit. He stood motionless for a moment, unsure as to how to handle the fragile thing in his arms.

“So…it’s not a boy,” Ted said uncertainly.

“No, she’s not.”

He looked down. The baby reflexively suckled in her sleep.

“What are you going to call it?”

“Brooke Penelope Davis.”

Ted gave a curt, approving nod.

“Mother must be pleased. Though, not nearly as pleased as she would have been with a grandson bearing my name, and my father’s name.”

“I’m sure,” said Victoria, allowing the smile that had been lurking around the corners of her mouth to make its appearance. “Too bad he can never be born now.”

Ted looked up at Victoria. “What do you mean?”

“I didn’t just have a C-section today, Ted. I also had a tubal litigation. It was a real bargain. The cut was already made, all they had to do was make a couple extra twists. And now, no more babies!”

For once in his life, Ted Davis looked speechless. His cheeks flushed with anger, his hands trembled, struggling to hold the newborn in the stiff position he’d maintained.

“You should have let me have the abortion, Ted. Now, neither one of us is getting what we want.” He didn’t respond. “Cheer up. For all you know, one of your side chicks is already pregnant.”

“I’m supposed to have a son with _you!”_ Ted finally snapped. Brooke’s milky eyes flew open in surprise. “You’re so selfish!”

 _“I’m_ selfish? You lied to me, Ted! You lied and you cheated. You were never going to help me start a clothing company.

“What, and move to Brooklyn with you? Give up my six figure job so that you could chase some stupid bored schoolgirl fantasy?”

The baby started to cry. Ted stiffly moved over to the bed and plunked her in Victoria’s arms.

“I might have helped you one day, you know. When the kids were old enough for boarding school, and we were in a more secure place, financially. But now, it will never happen. Congratulations, Vicky. I have no son, you have no company.”

He walked away, leaving Victoria to soothe her crying baby and herself.

With Gavin, she had been miserable because the only meaningful thing in her life was another person. And now she had fallen into that trap in a whole new way.


	13. Wasteland

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Parenting isn't as easy as it looks.

The coming days were painful, physical aches giving way to emotional ones and back again as the doctors gradually relieved Victoria of her opioids. Every few hours, someone came over and hooked the baby to her breast, then withdrew her again as soon as feeding was over.

Mother, Penelope, and Justine stayed at the hospital with Victoria in turns. Father and AJ came for visits. Ted turned up only once, to curtly tell Victoria that he wasn’t paying for a nanny or a night nurse because this was her baby, not his. For appearance’s sake he brought a bouquet of marigolds, Victoria’s least favorite flower, wrapped in a pale blue ribbon.

Victoria kept expecting one of her maternal figures to explode on her for sealing Brooke’s fate as an only child, but evidently Ted was keeping that scrap of information to himself.

Each time, Victoria was presented with the delicate, sunburn-red newborn, she would check to make sure that the baby’s identification bracelet matched hers. V. Davis and B. Davis, irrefutably connected.

Victoria had a baby. Victoria was a mother.

When they got home from the hospital, Victoria came home and found that her things had been switched with Ted’s things. He now had the master bedroom and she had the guest room, where the baby monitor had been hooked up. The nursery was ready, too. Drawers full of pepto pink blankets and cake frosting dresses had been dusted and cleaned, diapers and other new supplies stocked, the name on the wall above the crib painted over and reapplied. All evidence of Judith Hope Davis’s life had been removed.

On their first night home, while nursing Brooke in a hard wooden rocking chair by the glow of a lamp, Victoria suddenly remembered that Penelope had been living in Tree Hill for less than a decade. Not only had this woman kept her deceased baby’s nursery intact for twenty-five years after the fact, she had brought all these things from her house in Virginia and set up the room the same way in its entirety.

Simple as she was, maybe Penelope was kinder than Victoria had given her credit for. This was more loyalty than any dead five-day-old deserved.

Later, on her way back to bed, Victoria accidentally stumbled into the other nursery, the one that Ted had set up for Robert Theodore Davis III. There were golf club-sized holes in the walls, the furniture was upturned, and glass from the trophy case sprinkled the hardwood floor like snowflakes.

* * *

Every day was hell.

Victoria’s body, once beautiful and strong, looked and felt awful. Her life was no longer her own. She slept when Brooke slept, ate when Brooke slept, showered when she was able to scrape together the energy to stand for fifteen minutes. The necessities of nice clothes, hair, and makeup became a pipe dream.

Penelope’s demands only added to Victoria’s exhaustion. “Don’t eat anything with dairy in it, the baby could be allergic.” “Don’t stand too close to the radiator, it will affect your milk production.” “Don’t eat anything with meat products in it, the baby could be allergic.” “Don’t let her sleep in anything with lace, she’ll choke.” “Don’t eat anything with nuts in it, the baby could be allergic.”

One time, Victoria tried to nurse Brooke in the living room while watching TV. The next day Penelope gave the TV away. When Victoria asked why, Penelope explained that the nighttime soap Victoria had been watching contained harmful messages and that if Victoria kept exposing the baby to that filth she would grow up to be amoral.

Every little pleasure Victoria had had been taken from her. Even her fashion magazines had been thrown out when the rooms were switched.

The cards were relentless. Welcome to your new bundle of joy. God bless your precious miracle. Motherhood is the most rewarding job you will ever have.

Victoria’s cousin Margaret called to congratulate her. They spoke for a few minutes, each with an infant fussing in the background

“How are you feeling?” Victoria asked. “Are you tired all the time, too?”

“Oh yes, of course!” the other woman answered. “I’m just exhausted!”

For a moment, Victoria felt a twinge of relief. She wasn’t the only one.

“But…I’m also the happiest I’ve ever been in my life. Aren’t you?”

* * *

On her two-week birthday, Brooke happened to sleep for six hours straight, which left Victoria feeling marginally like herself the next morning. So she made up her mind to go out for breakfast. She brushed her hair, applied a little makeup, and found the least hideous outfit that she was able to fit in, which was a loose gingham top that went down past her ass over leggings. Then she changed and fed Brooke before putting her in a pink satin dress with white tights. Lastly, Victoria packed the diaper bag and stroller. By the time she made it to the Over Easy Diner, they were serving lunch.

She was greeted and served by a little blonde twig of a girl with ice blue eyes. There was a shameless judgement in them, “Are you sure you should be eating so many calories when you’re still so fat?” lingering between every line of polite script that slipped off the waitress’s tongue as Victoria ordered her cheeseburger.

Two days later, Victoria went back. This time she specifically requested that Karen be her waitress. Sure enough, Karen was cow-heavy and bulging from her own ongoing pregnancy. She had no qualms about bringing Victoria all the food she wanted in large amounts.

Victoria remembered the first time she had come to the Over Easy Diner with Ted, the night of the Armstrong Charity Ball. The first date that she hadn’t thought of as romantic. If someone had told her that it would lead to marriage, she would have slapped them. If someone had told her it would lead to a child, she would have run screaming out the door.

Ted had seemed so different then. He had truly behaved as though he respected her and liked her. Now, Victoria went days at a time without even seeing him. They had polite dinners with Penelope once or twice a week. Ted pretended he had _so much_ business to attend to. Victoria pretended not to know about the business he was giving to anyone in a skirt. Ted never went near the baby or even asked about her.

Partway through Victoria’s meal, Brooke woke up and started cooing in her pram. Karen came over and talked to the baby for a moment, tickling her round belly over her purple faux denim dress.

“She’s so perfect,” Karen whispered. “You must be so happy!”

God, why did _everyone_ keep assuming that?

“Do you like the dress she’s wearing?” Victoria asked. “You can have it when she outgrows it. That is, if you’re taking donations.”

Karen’s customer service face slipped. She recovered it quickly.

“Actually, I’m having a boy. But thank you for offering.”

Of course she was. _Of course_ the unmarried teenager was having a boy.

“That’s too bad,” Victoria crooned. “I’m sure we have _something_ you can use. My husband is always bringing her gifts. Toys and stuffed animals and things, to show his little girl how much he loves her. Very expensive things.”

Karen straightened up. “That’s very nice, Victoria.”

Victoria wasn’t done. “I’m sure you wish that you could afford for your baby to be as precious as mine.”

Karen’s face turned red.

“My baby is _already_ as precious as yours.”

“Really?” Victoria aimed a look at Karen’s naked left ring finger. “Doesn’t look like his father thinks so.”

Before she could blink, Karen’s open palm struck Victoria across the face.

Victoria screamed.

Karen jilted back in horror.

The manager appeared.

Karen immediately rushed back through the kitchen doors in tears.

“I’ll take my meal to go,” Victoria said.

Baby Brooke giggled until she spat up on her purple dress.

* * *

“I cannot believe that that twit friend of yours actually slapped me!” Victoria huffed. “Who the hell does she think she is?”

“A girl who is tired of being judged by everyone in town,” Justine replied as she settled down on the edge of Victoria’s bed and switched Brooke from one arm to the other. “And for whatever it’s worth, she got fired and the manager at the Over Easy Diner has promised you free ice cream for life.”

“Serves her right,” Victoria replied tersely, turning over under her blanket.

“Hey now. This isn’t like Karen. Right now, she’s angry and scared and miserable. Just like you.”

Victoria flipped back over to face Justine, surprise written in her expression.

“You really thought I wouldn’t know to worry about you?” Justine sat down on the bed beside Karen. “You haven’t been this quiet since you got dumped at your senior prom.”

In spite of everything, Victoria laughed out loud.

“I forgot about that. That jackass left with another girl.”

“And asked you to pay for your own corsage.”

“And then he said no hard feelings.”

Justine reached over with her free hand and smoothed the blanket over Victoria’s shoulder.

“You really haven’t had much luck with men, have you V?”

“No. I suppose I haven’t.”

As soon as she realized what she’d just admitted to, Victoria’s guard went up.

“You should probably go,” Victoria insisted. “I need to feed her before our afternoon nap.”

Justine smiled sadly. “Okay. Ice cream tomorrow?”

“For sure.”

* * *

Any day that Victoria could manage a trip out of the house, she went back to the Over Easy Diner. Once in a while she’d meet Justine for ice cream, but most days she ate alone. (Well, alone with Brooke.) She got used to the walk and the weight of the diaper bag on her shoulder. She learned that the back booth, furthest away from the windows, was best for nursing.

One afternoon, Victoria looked up and saw the two matriarch of the James family in the adjacent booth, two little high chairs at the end of the table. The father must be watching all the other kids. Or no wait, maybe they were in school. What day was it again? Tuesday?

When Lydia James rose to her feet to flag down a waitress, two sets of sticky lips leaned to kiss a proud, round belly. Pregnant _again_. Victoria thought of the gaggle of auburn-locked youngsters this woman paraded around town, from schoolchildren to toddlers. Victoria had read enough about the various stages of child development to know that she was dreading them all. Why, in god’s name, would someone willingly deal with all of them at once? What could have kept Lydia from getting her tubes tied all these years?

“Excuse me?”

Victoria looked up when she realized Lydia was talking to her.

“I hate to bother you, but I _really_ need to use the restroom. Can you sit here for a minute? Please?”

Victoria stood up and pushed Brooke’s pram over to the other table. She sat down across from the two rosy-cheeked pigtailed toddlers. The younger one, maybe a year old, repeatedly leaned and tried to grab the flowers on Brooke’s socks. The older one, maybe three, scribbled on a piece of paper and clutched a plastic Barbie doll.

“I’m getting a new baby,” the bigger girl announced as her mother made her way back to the table. “It’s gonna be cuter than yours.”

“Hush, Taylor,” said Mrs. James. She lowered herself in her seat and turned to Victoria. “Thank you. Your daughter’s beautiful. Is she your first?”

Victoria nodded.

The older woman offered a soft smile. “The first few months are the hardest.”

“No one ever talks about how hard it is.”

“I know. I had postpartum depression with my second. I don’t know what I would have done without my Jimmy.”

Victoria swallowed a lump in her throat she hadn’t known she had. She looked down at baby Brooke in the pram, already so much bigger than the day she was born.

“I wonder if she’ll ever know what I’ve given up for her.”

“She will one day. When she has a child of her own.”

Victoria shuddered at the thought of herself as a grandmother. She was _never_ letting Brooke get married or have kids.

“She wasn’t planned,” Victoria admitted. “I had all these dreams for myself, and now they’re just…gone.”

Mrs. James’s eyes twinkled. “I have a feeling that one day, her dream will be everything you’ve ever wanted.”

Victoria didn’t believe that. She would never be that kind of mother. She didn’t have it in her.


	14. Belfast Child

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ted and Victoria continue to live their lives as separately as possible.

On May 20th, the whole family met up at Tree Hill High for AJ’s graduation ceremony. Despite the pitfalls of taking an unpredictable two-month-old to an important event, Victoria was determined to attend. She sat down at the end of her family’s row, in case she needed to step out with the baby, and persuaded Justine and then Penelope to sit to her immediate left. Ted sat between his mother and Kate Porter, with Victoria’s mother and then her father at the end of the line.

Two rows ahead of the Montgomery-Davis clan, Karen was perched on one of the metal folding chairs clutching a blue bundle. She whispered something to her seatmate, a youthful curly-haired man with kind eyes, and he began handing her objects from her diaper bag.

“The father is back?” Victoria whispered.

Justine shook her head.

The man slung a blue-and-white striped burp cloth over his shoulder, took the wiggly baby from Karen’s arms, and began gently holding and patting him. Karen glanced back and forth from the stage to her companion, eyes shining with love and gratitude.

Penelope, who was holding her half-asleep granddaughter, nudged Ted.

“Look, Teddy! She’s making little noises with her lips!”

Ted forced a smile, shifted to the other side of his chair, and checked his gold watch.

A few seconds after Pomp and Circumstance began to play, the baby started crying, and Victoria had to quickly take her back to feed in order to keep her quiet.

Once the high school graduates had taken their seats at the front of the room, the principal made a brief speech, then the class valedictorian, and finally Coach Durham. The latter commended all of the graduates for their accomplishment before asking his current and former players to stand up so that the town could applaud them-as if that basketball team didn’t get enough glory in Tree Hill already-before he congratulated the boys himself. When he mentioned that AJ had played on the varsity team for two years, Mother and Father both clapped much longer than they should have.

“And lastly, as always, I wish to say a special thanks to the love of my life. Without her, I wouldn’t be half the man, or half the coach, I am today. Thank you, Camilla.”

Many times, Victoria had heard in gossip circles that one or the other of the Durhams was barren. A reasonable assumption, if it was true that they had talked about wanting children for years and then one day just stopped.

As the man returned to his seat, his wife of nearly three decades rose in a bright floral dress. She greeted him with a long, sweet kiss. He pulled back and brushed a tear of joy and a chocolate curl out of her face before they sat down.

Evidently, some couples didn’t need a baby to hold them together. Just as some couples didn’t let babies come between them. And some men forced their spouses to give birth and then cast dirty looks in their direction when the babies cried in public.

After the ceremony was over, they all headed to the front of the school to take a family photo.

“Eugenia Justine, stand in the front with your brother,” Mother directed. “Anthony, love, you move a little to the right, oh, face the other way, you look a little pale…yes, now Penelope behind Anthony Junior, and then Victoria with the baby…no, Ted, no that’s my spot. You stand next to your wife.”

Victoria tensed as she felt Ted slide behind her and plant himself at her side. He stood stiffly, hands behind his back, so close that when he turned his head she could feel his breath on her neck. Victoria shifted her weight to her other leg to add an inch of breathing room.

“Act like you like each other, for heaven’s sake,” Mother scolded. “We’re going to have these pictures forever.”

Ted’s arm slithered around Victoria’s waist. Her skin crawled where she felt his palm through her dress.

“Perfect,” Mother shoved her camera in Kate Porter’s hand, then took her self-assigned place beside Father. “Everyone say cheese!”

Ted and Victoria held their pearly white grins just long enough for the camera to click. Then, they moved apart from one another so fast that Ted nearly crashed into a shrub and Victoria knocked the cap off AJ’s head.

“Don’t go rushing off now,” Mother scolded teasingly. “I need some more photos of my children. And then maybe a few of just Ted and Victoria together.”

Before Victoria could grab Mother’s camera and offer to take a picture of her colon, Ted announced that he had an urgent meeting to attend at the club.

“You understand, right, Vicky?”

As if he actually wanted her blessing to go play golf and get laid.

“Of course, dear. I’ll see you tonight,” she lied.

* * *

A few days later, Victoria was wished a happy anniversary by exactly three people; her mother, Justine, and Penelope. Ted was nowhere to be found. Actually, she _never_ kept track of him anymore. Always some office, some golf course, or some hotel room. Could have been Tree Hill, North Carolina or Beijing, China for all that his existence impacted her day.

In the meantime, Brooke entered what Victoria could only pray would be the clingiest phase of her life. She slept for six hours in a row now, which was delightful, but when she was awake she had to be held. Otherwise, she would cry and shriek as though Victoria had abandoned her in a jungle full of snakes instead of merely laying her down in the middle of the bed long enough to change into a blouse not yet accessorized with spit-up.

Victoria did some research and discovered that if left alone, babies could learn how to self-soothe. So she tried turning off the baby monitor before she went to bed. She woke up at two o’clock that morning with a screaming infant being plunked on her chest and a screaming mother-in-law chastising her for her “mistake.”

Surprisingly, the silver lining of motherhood turned out to be breastfeeding. It burned more calories than any cardio workout Victoria had ever tried. By the time another couple of months had gone by, she had shrunk back into most of her old clothes. She was still puffy in them, but they fit.

“Next time you visit the doctor, make sure you ask about getting the baby on some diet pills,” Penelope remarked one day at dinner.

“Excuse me?”

“Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed how fat she’s getting.”

She supposed that Brooke _was_ getting a little chubby, but even Victoria knew that infants were supposed to be chubby.

 _Besides,_ Victoria thought, _Better her than me._

* * *

Victoria’s home-away-from-home had become the back booth at the Over Easy Diner. All three of the regular waitresses had memorized her usual order and two of them looked forward to her generous tips. The skinny blonde one, Shari Crispin, always tossed out some backhanded compliment about Victoria’s weight or makeup, so she never got more than 10%.

One day, a gruff young man in jeans and plaid approached her while she was eating a grilled cheese sandwich.

“Hey…Vicky Davis, right?” Victoria nodded. “I recognized you from your picture in Ted’s wallet. I’m Larry Sawyer.” When Victoria showed no sign of recognition, he continued, “I work down at the marina. Your husband asked my advice when he was selecting his boat.”

Ted had bought a boat? When had _that_ happened?

“Oh right, Larry,” Victoria lied. “Nice to put a face to the name.”

“It’s quite something, isn’t it?” Larry chuckled. “The _S.S. Robert Theodore Davis III_?”

“Are you kidding me?” Victoria blurted out.

Larry winced. “I’ve said something I shouldn’t have, haven’t I?”

“Sorry. It’s just that he wanted to name his son that. But we had a girl instead. And I’d wager anything he’s spent more time with his new boat than he has with her.”

Victoria’s cheeks flushed. What the hell was she doing? She couldn’t open up to any of her friends or family, but here she was venting to a total stranger about Ted?

“I am so sorry. I don’t even know you.”

“It’s quite all right.”

Larry leaned over to get a better look at the baby, who was sucking on a pink pacifier in her sleep.

“She’s beautiful. I’m sorry that your husband isn’t more appreciative of the child he’s lucky enough to have. And I hope that when he does get around to counting his blessings, he remembers to include you for giving her to him.”

There was no chance of that ever happening. But the validation was comforting. It was something to hold onto in the coming days, along with the realization that Victoria could be blasting trash pop and chugging vodka and _still_ be a better parent than Ted. She was _there_ , wasn’t she?

* * *

Justine spent part of her last day before leaving for nursing school with her friends, and part of it with Victoria at the Davis house.

“Mother and Father had a big fight last night,” Justine said as she bounced Brooke in her arms. “They sent AJ and me to the kitchen to finish dinner.”

“Oh?” Victoria set her makeup brush down in its drawer. “What was it about?”

“She’s worried about him. Says he looks sick and hasn’t been eating enough. He says he’s fine.” Justine sat down at the edge of Victoria’s bed. “I wish more people would realize that having marital troubles is nothing to be ashamed of. Because it’s not. You know?”

“Well, our parents have been married twenty-five years. I suppose you can’t be with someone for that long without arguing about something,” Victoria said carefully as she brushed her lashes with mascara. “It doesn’t have to be a big deal. So, nursing school, huh?”

Justine was quiet for a moment. Brooke grabbed a strand of her long brown hair and yanked on it.

“Ow!”

“Sorry.” Victoria turned and grabbed Brooke’s purple monkey. “Here, use this.”

As soon as Brooke saw the monkey, she squealed with delight and grabbed it with both fists, releasing her aunt’s hair.

“V, I have a confession to make. I don’t want to go to nursing school to meet rich doctors.”

“I figured you didn’t. So, what’s the real reason?”

“I want to go back to the hospital in Kenya where I volunteered on my mission trip. Permanently.”

“Are you serious?” Victoria spun around. “Jussie, do you realize just how much Mother is going to _hate_ the idea of you moving to Africa and doing manual labor like some…regular person?”

“Yes, I do.” Justine shifted. “I guess this is your chance to get back at me for telling her about you and Gavin.”

“I’m not gonna do that,” Victoria went over to sit down next to Justine on her bed. “As stupid as you were that day, I can’t blame you for how things ended with Gavin.”

“You blame Mother?”

“I blame myself.”

“So what now?”

“Now, you finish up your nursing degree, you apply for that job, and you don’t tell anybody but me until after you’ve graduated. Actually, don’t even tell them then. Let them think you’re only going to Kenya for a few months, then cash in your return ticket and use it to get yourself an apartment or a hut or whatever they have over there.”

Justine chuckled. “I meant for you, V.”

“Don’t you worry about me. I’ll be fine.” Victoria didn’t acknowledge her sister’s skeptical expression.

“Victoria!” Penelope called. “Eugenia!”

Justine groaned at the mention of her first name.

“Girls! We need to get to the hospital right away!”

Victoria stood up and opened the bedroom door.

“What’s wrong?” Victoria called. Her mother-in-law rounded the corner.

“I’ve brought the car around…we need to go. It’s your father. He’s collapsed.”


End file.
